The Government has asked a panel of experts to decide whether children should be banned from petting farm animals, after an outbreak of E-coli was linked to a farm in Surrey. At the time of going to press, the Health Protection Agency reported that 67 cases of E-coli had been linked to the Godstone Farm. Eight children are currently in hospital but none are seriously ill.
One of the UK's leading authorities on diseases said that parents should 'think very hard' about letting under-fives touch animals at petting farms. Hugh Pennington, emeritus professor of bacteriology at the University of Aberdeen, said 'We have to look very seriously at the guidelines that we have been running for many years and see if they need changing. I think the public expects that we have a really good look at the guidelines.'
The Department of Health announced on Monday that the advisory committee on dangerous pathogens would be reviewing the current guidance on open farms and will advise on the need for additional precautions, following the current outbreak.
