THE anniversary of the outbreak of foot-and-mouth on Wednesday this week was an opportunity to look back at the terrible events of 2001, but also to look forward.

While much coverage in newspapers and television has been rightly given to the impact of the disease on the farming industry and the wider farming community it is now time to re-double efforts to get back to normality.

A key element in that is the return of regular auction marts. Hexham started on Friday, Northallerton and Leyburn held marts this week and a mart will be held in Stokesley tomorrow. Nothing will perhaps sound sweeter than the noise of livestock in pens and the auctioneer's hammer.

Some restrictions on livestock movements remain and will be so until after the lambing period but many farms are re-stocking, which in itself is a remarkable act of faith. The risk of foot-and-mouth entering the country is still present because nothing has been done to improve the monitoring of imports. The crisis is arguably not over, just in abeyance, for how long we know not. The inquiries into the outbreak, whatever form they take, must tackle that issue above all else.

But this week we should rejoice in the the fact that life is returning to our farms, our marts and the countryside. Much needs to be done to restore the economic vitality of our rural areas but we are surely through the worst of this most devastating depression.