Pointing ends FMD restrictions
18 January 2002
End of disinfection measures at point-to-point courses as Britain is declared FMD-free
The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has announced that Northumberland is now an FMD-free county and, as a result, the Jockey Club has lifted all but one of the FMD-related measures for point-to-pointing
Venues no longer need to provide any disinfection measures, nor do owners need to complete certificates of compliance each time their horse runs.
The only evidence that owners will still need to provide is the grid reference of their training premises when registering Hunter Certificates until the end of the season.
This is to ensure that if there is another flare up of FMD, DEFRA would immediately be able to trace it and restrict livestock movement in that area.
Fraser Garrity, manager of the Racecourse and Point to Point Department, said: “This is really good news for point-to-point organisers and participants, we are looking forward to a smoothly run, FMD-free season.”
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