BOVINE bungling by the Government has already cost the country thousands of jobs, says Pendle MP Gordon Prentice.
He blamed mishandling of the mad cow disease problem after demanding official figures from Agriculture minister Douglas Hogg.
Mr Hogg told the MP that since the crisis erupted in March, 200 retail butchers had been forced to close, together with one abattoir, 30 head-boning plants, two livestock retailers and 15 wholesalers.
No figures were available for food processing firms affected by the beef export ban.
"With the biggest abattoir in the North West and one of the biggest in the country in my constituency, I am very concerned about the effect of the crisis on jobs.
"It is clear that many long-established family firms and many more jobs have already been lost," he added.
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