Last week agents from the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) working on behalf of Defra, broke into a farm in Gloucestershire without permission from the farmer. While Mr Ogden was away they removed a cow which had returned an ‘inconclusive’ result following a routine TB test in July, which when retested in September by their vet, had been given the all clear.
Despite tests showing the cow was not a carrier, they broke in by taking the gates off the hinges, and took this healthy cow away to be destroyed.
Mr and Mrs Ogden who are now having to bottle feed the cow’s calf said, “It is like living in a police state, we have no say in any of this.”
Farms which are Farm Assured, are required to have an isolation box. There is no reason why this cow could not have remained safely on the farm for further tested if necessary. It is unlikely there was any risk of the disease spreading, as the cow had been proved to be clear.
It is vital that everything is done to lessen the spread of this disease and protect the livelihoods of dairy and beef farmers. However, it is worth noting that I have heard reports from a number of vets who have been TB screening for decades, and some farmers who have had reactor cattle removed from their farms, that none of these cattle which have been destroyed, have shown any sign of the disease at post mortem.
This has only recently come to my notice, and I am shocked by this revelation. I have no doubt that some post mortems do show TB lesions, but I am now beginning to question just how many healthy cattle have been destroyed, and how many farms have been brought to their knees while in lock down, as a result of ‘inconclusive’ testing.
They say a week in politics is a long time. Not a day went by last week without some further revelation which has excited the media. The media are just loving the succession of disclosures, however trivial and are cranking up their significance. Much of which would normally slide by beneath the radar.
Whatever happened to the concept of ‘innocence until proven guilty’? It is quite frankly irresponsible and manipulative that individuals, the media and BBC in particular, have decided to hang out to dry, for purely political and personal gain, people they wish to remove from office, stab in the back, or feel are a threat to their agenda. Shame on them.
The public are becoming increasingly tired of watching these antics. Each day another individual breaks cover having decided to make themselves appear interesting for their five minutes of fame, and have dug deep to find incidents which are clearly insignificant but damaging.
Sadly these stories are picked up by grubby journalists and newspapers, prepared to create a headline which implies guilt without proof.
If you read the back page of the financial papers you will learn that the economy is growing faster that we are led to believe. The present financial situation is far rosier than the usual hysterical, doom-laden popular commentary, according to Allister Heath.
As he said, “Because nine out of ten economists oppose Brexit, the consensus view is even more incorrectly biased towards pessimism.”
The economy accelerated in the three months to the end of October, growing 0.5pc, better than the 0.4pc reported by the ONS for the third quarter.
Manufacturing is up for the fifth month in a row, and its annual growth rate is very strong at 2.7pc. The trade balance improved in September, and exports grew by 5.4pc month on month.
As Tom Stevenson said, “Our desire to seek out information that reinforces our existing beliefs and reject anything that undermines our prejudices is powerful and dangerous.” Remoaners, the BBC, and editors of the Independent, Guardian and Sunday Mail should take note.
Despite tests showing the cow was not a carrier, they broke in by taking the gates off the hinges, and took this healthy cow away to be destroyed.
Mr and Mrs Ogden who are now having to bottle feed the cow’s calf said, “It is like living in a police state, we have no say in any of this.”
Farms which are Farm Assured, are required to have an isolation box. There is no reason why this cow could not have remained safely on the farm for further tested if necessary. It is unlikely there was any risk of the disease spreading, as the cow had been proved to be clear.
It is vital that everything is done to lessen the spread of this disease and protect the livelihoods of dairy and beef farmers. However, it is worth noting that I have heard reports from a number of vets who have been TB screening for decades, and some farmers who have had reactor cattle removed from their farms, that none of these cattle which have been destroyed, have shown any sign of the disease at post mortem.
This has only recently come to my notice, and I am shocked by this revelation. I have no doubt that some post mortems do show TB lesions, but I am now beginning to question just how many healthy cattle have been destroyed, and how many farms have been brought to their knees while in lock down, as a result of ‘inconclusive’ testing.
They say a week in politics is a long time. Not a day went by last week without some further revelation which has excited the media. The media are just loving the succession of disclosures, however trivial and are cranking up their significance. Much of which would normally slide by beneath the radar.
Whatever happened to the concept of ‘innocence until proven guilty’? It is quite frankly irresponsible and manipulative that individuals, the media and BBC in particular, have decided to hang out to dry, for purely political and personal gain, people they wish to remove from office, stab in the back, or feel are a threat to their agenda. Shame on them.
The public are becoming increasingly tired of watching these antics. Each day another individual breaks cover having decided to make themselves appear interesting for their five minutes of fame, and have dug deep to find incidents which are clearly insignificant but damaging.
Sadly these stories are picked up by grubby journalists and newspapers, prepared to create a headline which implies guilt without proof.
If you read the back page of the financial papers you will learn that the economy is growing faster that we are led to believe. The present financial situation is far rosier than the usual hysterical, doom-laden popular commentary, according to Allister Heath.
As he said, “Because nine out of ten economists oppose Brexit, the consensus view is even more incorrectly biased towards pessimism.”
The economy accelerated in the three months to the end of October, growing 0.5pc, better than the 0.4pc reported by the ONS for the third quarter.
Manufacturing is up for the fifth month in a row, and its annual growth rate is very strong at 2.7pc. The trade balance improved in September, and exports grew by 5.4pc month on month.
As Tom Stevenson said, “Our desire to seek out information that reinforces our existing beliefs and reject anything that undermines our prejudices is powerful and dangerous.” Remoaners, the BBC, and editors of the Independent, Guardian and Sunday Mail should take note.
RSS Feed