CAMPAIGNERS pressing for a full public inquiry into last year's foot-and-mouth epidemic have been urged to accept defeat.

The call to move on from the catastrophic events of last year came from farmers in the region who are trying to lead a recovery in the industry.

The High Court yesterday ruled that Whitehall was within its rights to resist a detailed investigation into what went wrong.

The Government has already ordered three separate hearings into the outbreak, which devastated the rural economy last year.

But a group of farmers, hoteliers and vets - backed by the Press - has insisted the facts should be heard in the open and won a judicial review.

However, Lord Justice Simon Brown and Mr Justice Scott Baker yesterday ruled the Government's decision was a political one and could not be challenged in law.

Nevertheless, Lord Justice Brown said: "I think it important, however, that in dismissing these applications, the court does not give the impression that it regards the decision to hold the Lessons Learned inquiry in closed session as necessarily the right decision."

Acting as spokesman for the campaigners, Devon farmer Robert Persey admitted they were disappointed.

"The judge considered that, if the decision was wrong, it could be rectified at the ballot box - but farmers and others affected are a minority and do not control the ballot box," he said.

"It could be argued that this is the end of democratic rights in the country."

But support for a full public inquiry into the foot-and-mouth crisis has not been universal - many farmers would prefer to put the epidemic behind them and move on. Phillip Holden, who chairs a consortium of farmers across the region, said: "People I have spoken to today are focused on looking forward. It could be months before an inquiry came to a conclusion and, by then, the whole crisis would be forgotten.

"As long as we know Defra (Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) has a better handle on the disease and is more aware of just how dangerous it can be, that is all we need."

Bishop Auckland MP Derek Foster, who has repeatedly called for a public inquiry, last night said he was "disappointed" by the ruling, but complimented work done so far by the Government's Lessons Learned inquiry, which gathered evidence from the region earlier this month.

"I would still prefer a public inquiry because only that would clear the air and give the public confidence that the Government has nothing to hide," said Mr Foster, whose constituency was among the worst hit in the North-East.

Read more about the foot-and-mouth crisis here.