A few incidents yesterday got me thinking about the law and farming. Somehow the farming community seems to be a law completely unto itself, exempt from the rules that apply to other folk.
Sunday was the annual sponsored walk supporting Teenage Cancer Trust. It was a lovely day on Dartmoor but for me was slightly tainted by being forced to keep my dog on a lead for 10 miles because of grazing sheep. Why are farmers allowed to keep sheep in our National Parks whilst being paid to keep their own fields dormant? It’s mad!
On the same day, whilst walking up the old Princetown railway line, a young child on a Quad-bike passed us at a ridiculous speed. How on Earth is a quad-bike allowed on a cycle trial? Because the law exempts farming vehicles and their users from restrictions that apply to other drivers.
Lastly, on the same day newspapers report this article of a dog being shot. Not for worrying sheep, but cows. This was a boxer dog not a man eating tiger, geez! The police response to this, “A police spokesman said there were no independent witnesses and, as it was deemed a civil matter rather than a criminal offence, there would be no further police action.”. What a load of bollocks. Seems that like the ban on hunting with hounds, the police put cases like this in the “too difficult” tray.