A mother who was forced to miss two months of work after being struck down by food poisoning on a family holiday is calling on the EU to do more to prevent tainted meat from reaching the dinner plate.

Helen Witts, from Pontyclun, Wales, said her symptoms – vomiting, diarrhea and stomach cramps – were so severe she had to take eight weeks of sick leave from her job as a school driver assistant.

The 51-year-old contracted campylobacter and was diagnosed shortly after returning from Sunny Beach, Bulgaria, where she stayed at the Tiara Beach Club Hotel.

Helen fell ill on the penultimate day of her trip with her 58-year-old partner, Colin, and 15-year-old son, Liam, last August.

She said she used her own medication to ease her stomach cramps, but her condition worsened when she returned home to Wales.

A Thomas Cook spokesperson told MailOnline Travel: ‘Thomas Cook takes health and hygiene issues very seriously and maintaining the safety of our customers is our number one priority.”

Uh-huh