EAST Lancashire MP Nigel Evans is to keep up the pressure for a full scale public inquiry into the foot and mouth epidemic which has devastated the area.

He made the pledge after Farming Minister Alun Michael refused his call for an independent probe in a Commons debate.

The Ribble Valley Tory said a public inquiry was the only way to find out what happened, how the epidemic was mishandled by the government and to stop it happening again. He condemned Mr Michael's refusal to hold an open investigation as "irresponsible" during a special 90-minute debate he called at Westminster on the issue.

But the Minister said the government was holding three separate investigations into how the outbreak occurred, how it spread and how any repeat could be prevented.

Mr Evans' call for a lengthy and expensive public inquiry was "totally irresponsible" he claimed.

But the Shadow Welsh Secretary was very disappointed and said: "I am appalled and disheartened by the response from the government to this debate. Alun Michael degraded the whole debate with his inadequate response.

"He clearly has no sympathy for the farming industry which is still reeling from the impact of foot and mouth.

"We will await any action that now follows this debate. The government is scared of the embarrassing revelations that might come from this inquiry -- but they should be afraid of another outbreak of foot and mouth.

"They were late to prevent the wide spread of this outbreak and their inaction to institute a full inquiry means that recommendations to help stem any further outbreak and lessons to be learnt from the current one will go unheard."

More than 50 farmers in East Lancashire were affected by the outbreak and Mr Evans highlighted many local farmers and related industries that had suffered from the epidemic.

Local farmers have claimed they have not received enough help and called for a level playing field with Europe over the price of produce. East Lancashire National Farmers Union representative Steve Fawcett has told Mr Evans of low morale in the industry.

Mr Evans said there were a string of "horror stories" about the epidemic and its handling throughout East Lancashire and attacked government claims that farmers had helped spread foot and mouth.

He praised the Clitheroe-based regeneration group, the Bowland Initiative, for helping more than 100 farmers in the Ribble Valley.