EU Set to lift 10-Year Ban on British Beef – Official
Date: 06-Mar-06
Country: BELGIUM
"The feeling we have is that the ban will be lifted at the vote (by EU veterinary experts) next week," the official said.
Italy may try to block the deal, blaming upcoming elections as a reason not to vote on the issue, the official added.
However, the vote will be by qualified majority and the executive European Commission is confident that Britain can answer any outstanding concerns other member states may have.
The beef export ban was imposed on Britain at the peak of the 1990s mad cow scare.
British beef exports to the European Union were halted in 1996 as the brain-wasting disease, known formally as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), spread through the country.
