A case of bird flu has been confirmed at a duck breeding farm in East Yorkshire, officials have said.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the risk to public health was very low. Some 6,000 birds will be culled and a 10km (6 mile) exclusion zone is in place.

The exact strain has not been confirmed but the H5N1 form, deadly to humans, has been ruled out by Defra officials.

The virus spreads between birds and, in rare cases, can affect humans.

The case is the first in the UK since 2008, when chickens on a farm in Banbury, Oxfordshire tested positive for the virus.

On Sunday, an outbreak of a highly contagious strain of bird flu was discovered at a poultry farm in the Netherlands.

The Dutch government has imposed a three-day nationwide ban on the transportation of poultry and eggs.

Officials say the strain, H5N8, is very dangerous for bird life and could potentially affect humans, although people can only be infected through very close contact with the affected birds.

EU officials, meeting in Brussels, have said the British case is "most likely" linked to the current outbreak in the Netherlands and a recent outbreak in Germany. They also believe migratory birds heading south for winter are responsible.

Environment Secretary Liz Truss is due to make a Commons statement about the outbreak.

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