As the foot and mouth outbreak tightened its grip today, more than 100 workers were sent home from Malton Bacon Factory.

And a North Yorkshire MP called for footpaths to be closed.

Refuse collections from farms were suspended in Hambleton in a bid to halt the spread of the disease, several nature reserves in York were closed indefinitely, and even the date of General Election was put in doubt.

The number of confirmed cases in England rose to 12, though there was still no sign of the scourge in Yorkshire.

All 110 slaughter line workers at Malton Bacon Factory were sent home on full pay and told the situation would be reviewed at the end of this week.

Kathy Cuddihy, spokeswoman for parent company Uniq, said it had taken the action because of restrictions on the transportation of animals.

She added: "The rest of our staff at Malton Bacon, which employs 2,100 people, are all still working as normal.

"It is early days to say how the factory will be affected by the crisis. We don't know whether pig prices will be driven up by it."

Vale of York Tory MP Anne McIntosh called in the Commons last night for prompt action to close footpaths.

Agriculture Minister Baroness Hayman was due to meet the chief veterinary officer Jim Scudamore today, when the paths issue was likely to be discussed.

North Yorkshire County Council said schools and school transport were continuing to run normally, though precautions were being taken against spreading the disease. Programmes at outdoor education centres were being restricted to off-farm activities.

The Countryside Alliance called off its planned London rally on March 18, and its chief executive Richard Burge claimed it would be unfair on rural voters to hold a General Election during the foot and mouth crisis.

The Easingwold-based president of the National Farmers' Union (NFU), Ben Gill, was reported as saying an election campaign would not be possible.

Regional NFU spokesman Rob Simpson said: "If they call an election now there may be difficulties with running such a campaign."

He added: "Every single countryside business will be curtailed in some way or other at the moment."

Updated: 12:42 Tuesday, February 27, 2001