Archive Article: 2000/09/29
Peter Delbridge
Peter Delbridge farms 162ha
(400 acres) in the Exmoor
National Park, near South
Molton, Devon. The farm is
mostly permanent grass,
classed as less favoured and
environmentally sensitive,
and all above 300m
(1000ft). It is stocked with
800 ewes, replacement ewe
lambs, 60 spring calving
sucklers and their followers
well under way with rams having their second, and less severe pedicure along with five minutes in a zinc sulphate footbath.
To assist in easy care shepherding I have been looking at the possibility of putting in a large footbath, like they use in Australia. Then I can treat a large number of standing sheep at one time, instead of them hop, skip and jumping through my existing bath.
What a complete fiasco the HLCA/HFA reorganisation is turning out to be. Did no one in MAFF – the ministry against farming and fishing – have the nous to quiz the commission beforehand whether their proposals were acceptable?
Instead, as the deadline approaches I fear we will end up with a scheme that pleases few and redistributes funding from south west England to the north.
Apparently, our land will be classified by using a 10-year-old map that we arent allowed to see until after proposals are ratified, with no right to appeal.
On top of that, the entire scheme annually receives less funding than Tony Blairs Millennium Dome gets in additional money just to keep it open.
To be fair, this is the sort of thing the NFU is extremely good at sorting out for its members. However, where it fails miserably is standing up to supermarkets. And so it was no surprise that a Farmers For Action meeting at Filleigh, Devon, was packed to the rafters with disgruntled farmers.
The speeches delivered by Messrs Mead and Handley were of the type that I have waited to hear from successive NFU presidents for some time.
So it was with pride and privilege I took part, along with several farmers and local hauliers, in the peasants revolt on fuel tax.
Time will tell if it has done any good and I suppose any selfish farmers with an "Im all right jack" attitude, who didnt protest, will be the first to fill up with cheaper fuel. *
Protest… Peter Delbridge says he was privileged to take part in the peasants revolt on fuel tax.