The avian flu outbreak continues to spread in the UK, with almost 1.8 million farmed and captive birds culled over the past three months.

As of yesterday (12 February) 33 outbreaks of the virus had been recorded on farms and from Sunday, the government has said that five more English counties will have to house birds indoors, the BBC reported.

Housing orders are in place across the East Riding of Yorkshire, City of Kingston upon Hull, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Shropshire, York and North Yorkshire.

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However, it has since been announced that from midnight on 16 February, the restrictions will also apply across Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Cheshire, Merseyside and Lancashire.

According to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), since the first outbreak on 5 November, the 1.78 million birds that have been culled represents a “small proportion” of the sector’s entire production.

While the government said it recognised the impacts that the spread of bird flu was having on farms, it stated that it has acted fast to cull all infected poultry .

For any healthy birds that have been culled for disease control purposes, farmers will be paid compensation, Defra said.

A Defra spokesperson told the BBC: “We know the devastating impact bird flu has had on farmers and poultry producers, which is why we have taken further measures in recent weeks, including introducing housing orders in the most affected areas.

“We have acted quickly to cull all poultry on infected premises to stop the risk of the disease spreading and to protect Britain’s food security.”