FARMERS fighting for more than £1m from the Government for work during the foot-and-mouth crisis vowed yesterday never to work for them again unless they were paid in advance.

More than a year after the region was declared disease free, the Northumberland and Durham Machinery Ring said it was still owed money by the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

The farmers' co-operative said Defra's "delaying tactics" could result in a cash-flow crisis, and members would take legal action if they were not paid in full.

In a co-operative newsletter, chairman Tony Brown said the ring, which has 300 members, would continue to "pursue the debt vigorously".

"It is extremely frustrating to me and very demoralising to all the staff to see that at this point all the hard work could potentially lead the machinery ring into a cash flow crisis," he said.

The machinery ring, based in Crook, County Durham, was set up in 1998 and gives those with machinery and labour the chance to rent out their equipment to fellow farmers.

During the foot-and-mouth crisis, farmers worked all hours using their machinery to move and transport the piles of carcasses left from the gruesome culls. They say payments were initially made by Defra at regular intervals, but had stopped in January without warning, and with Defra asking for additional details.

Since then, the machinery ring has been forced to take on extra staff to cope with the demands for information, such as the chassis numbers of machinery used.

The machinery ring, which is non-profit making, is believed to be one of dozens of organisations owed millions of pounds across the country. Cumbria County Council says it is owed £4m.

A spokesman for Defra said: "We have given a substantial amount of money to these people and there is no reason why they should not have paid their subcontractors."

He declined to comment further.