All horses and ponies in England and Wales are to be given a unique registration number and 'a passport for life', the rural affairs minister, Mr Alun Michael, announced last week. In a statement on February 14, Mr Michael said that all horses, ponies and donkeys would need to have passports by December 31, 2003, bringing the country into line with European legislation. The Government also hoped to see a central database on horses established, which could be used for disease control purposes. In outlining the arrangements, DEFRA said that it had looked for the most cost-effective way of meeting the EU requirements, while keeping bureaucracy to a minimum. This would be achieved by working with the equine industry, within which many organisations already had registers and issued passports. By working with these organisations, the need to create a new bureaucracy would be avoided, it said, and owners would benefit from 'a fully integrated system'.
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