Welsh could end ban on beef on bone

Beef on the bone could be legal in Wales within two months, as lifting the ban looks likely to be the first issue discussed by the new Welsh Assembly.

Pressure from opposition parties is mounting to lift the ban and, with a minority Labour administration controlling only 28 of the 60 votes, Welsh restaurants look increasingly likely to be selling beef on the bone again.

Although the Welsh Assembly started sitting this week (26 May), its new powers will not come into effect until 1 July.

"Meanwhile, the pressure from the opposition to lift the ban is strong," said Alan Thomas, spokesman for the Labour administration.

"The whole thing is ridiculous. Our meat is probably the safest in the world," said Dai Davies, owner of the Glan Rannell Park hotel in Llandovery, Carmarthenshire.

For some, however, reinstating the meat will make littledifference. Chris Chown, chef-proprietor of the 40-seat Plas Bodegroes restaurant in Pwllheli, Gwynedd, said that despite the ban he has continued to sell the meat and use oxtail in his stocks.