Lessons learned from the foot-and-mouth crisis in Cumbria will help reshape the government department which deals with rural affairs.

A review is being carried out into the running of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Rural Affairs Minister Alun Michael says the review will use the experience of Cumbria during the 2001 outbreak.

However, Mr Michael insisted the review is not the result of criticism the department received from the Cumbrian and European inquiries into foot-and-mouth.

'Task force'

Mr Michael said: "Rural economies and rural communities are challenged at the moment.

"A lot of those problems were there before foot-and-mouth disease took place."

Earlier this month it was announced that Cumbria is to get more than �42m to help it recover from the effects of foot-and-mouth disease.

Animals on more than 3,000 farms were destroyed and the tourist industry is believed to have lost �200m during the year-long outbreak.

The North West Development Agency (NWDA), will distribute the �42m over the next five years.

Mr Michael said: "A lot of the work I have already undertaken is looking at the effects of foot-and-mouth and also how we can move forward.

"Recently I have been in touch with the task force is Cumbria with a view to improving the rural economy for the whole area."

It is hoped the money allocated to Cumbria will help create up to 5,000 jobs.