Systems which chart the movement of livestock around the country need fine-tuning if they are to protect consumers and prevent the spread of disease during any future outbreak, according to the National Audit Office.

In a report published today the watchdog said the agriculture department's systems for identifying and tracking the 25 million cattle, sheep and pigs in England have achieved their initial objectives.

But it warned that more could be done to realise other potential benefits from the systems and reduce costs.

The government believes that identifying and tracking livestock helps to safeguard human and animal health. It also assists control of farming subsidies and improves the farming industry's commercial performance.

Ministers say the cattle tracing system, which tracks the movements of individual cattle, helped to protect the public from BSE.

The NAO noted, however, that the animal movements licensing system, introduced following foot and mouth epidemic, has not been tested by a serious disease outbreak.

But it reported that the industry considers it robust enough to cope with a future epidemic.

The report catalogued a series of concerns which need to be addressed both by ministers and the agriculture industry.

It found that there are inaccuracies in the information reported - with a quarter of postal applications for cattle passports including an error.

As a result the current location of two per cent of cattle is uncertain.

Movement information is not fully up to date in many cases because the deadlines for reporting are not always respected.

The watchdog notes that DEFRA plans to manage change to its systems in a £136 million "livestock identification and tracing programme".

This will replace information currently held in separate livestock tracking, veterinary and subsidy computer systems.

"The successful implementation of the programme presents significant challenges but the department has strengthened the governance of the programme to manage the key risks - principally by establishing a high-level design authority to coordinate strategic decisions," says the NAO.

"Uncertainties include whether there will be sufficient take-up of e-services by farmers; and technical challenges, such as developing robust electronic identification systems for working farms and markets."

It calls for easier methods of electronic reporting, the setting targets for cleaning up data and closer cooperation with the industry to reduce errors in the information submitted by farmers.

National Audit Office Sir John Bourn said: "Information on the movement of animals around the country is of vital importance in the fight to prevent the spread of animal disease, all the more so when there is a serious outbreak. It is also vital to consumers' confidence in the food that they eat.

The animal identification and tracking systems in place at present have helped to protect public health but both systems are in need of improvement."