Brussels, 20/09/2005 (Agence Europe) - The Commissioner responsible for health and consumer protection, Markos Kyprianou, noted that considerable headway had been made in the discussions in Council on the proposal of directive aimed at updating the Community measures to combat avian flu, but that this effort should be continued. The Commission's proposal, which dates back to April (see EUROPE 8938), aims to amend the legislation in force (Directive 92/40/EC) by tackling the problem in a more global manner, and by taking into account the potential risk of an avian flu epidemic. In the meantime, Member States have already voluntarily set in place the main changes suggested in the Commission's proposal, with the adoption in particular of programmes for the surveillance of wild and domestic fowl. These programmes received Community funding amounting to EUR 884,000 for the period July 2005-January 2006 (EUROPE 9028), and other funds will also be made available. The Commissioner announced, moreover, that he would be taking part in a meeting of veterinary experts and experts in human medicine from Member States, to be held on 22 September, as “although human and animal health aspects must be kept separate and treated differently, they must be tackled together”. The Commission will also support the United States' proposal to establish a partnership with the EU to combat this pandemic “but we must also act at international level, especially by supporting the mechanisms of the FAO”, Mr Kyprianou stressed. The Commission is working on the possibility of organising an international conference on the issue. “We were able to adopt an action plan in February this year but funding must now be found. The battle will only be effective if we can get down to the root of the problem”, Mr Kyprianou concluded.