Sir, -The other day, with considerable reluctance, I signed a petition calling for a public inquiry into the foot-and-mouth epidemic. My reluctance stemmed from the fact that, although I believe there should be a public inquiry, I found myself greatly at odds with the tone of the preamble to the petition.

Unfortunately it was yet another anti-government and anti-Maff/Defra rant by a farming community for whom I have great, but rapidly diminishing, respect. While demanding an inquiry into various aspects of the outbreak the authors had clearly already decided that the government had been incompetent, dishonest and uncaring and some of the language used was highly emotive and pejorative.

This was yet another example of the fact that farmers increasingly see themselves as helpless victims of people and circumstances entirely beyond their control rather than as an industry which has to a large extent contributed to its own problems.

Farmers have been too ready to be persuaded both by governments and powerful interests in the agribusiness industry to adopt practices which have ultimately harmed the public, the industry and individual farmers while lining the pockets of big business.

The BSE and foot-and-mouth epidemics have both been exacerbated by such practices and the result is that many consumers see farmers not as producers of wholesome food using safe and humane methods but as an industry bent on maximum output and profit at the expense of animal welfare, the environment and public health.

I would like a public inquiry to examine, amongst other things, the following aspects of the foot-and-mouth outbreak.

l The extent to which modern farming and marketing practices have helped the rapid spread of the disease.

l The role played by the alleged thousands of illegal animal movements in the transmission of the disease.

l The alleged fraudulent compensation claims by farmers whose animals have been culled and the persistent claims, supported by some of their number, that foot and mouth disease has been deliberately spread by a few greedy and irresponsible farmers.

Farmers should stop blaming everyone else for their problems and take a hard look at their own behaviour if they want to regain the widespread public support they once enjoyed.

PETER J ATKINSON

Park House,

Keld.

What biosecurity?

Sir, - Is it any wonder that foot-and-mouth disease is still spreading? Over the last week, numerous slaughtermen and their vehicles - we are talking about a small army of them - have been parked up on the road into the Thirsk industrial estate. These are the same people I believe who have recently been fined for inadequately disinfecting their equipment.

Why on earth are they parked in such a sensitive place as right beside the Post Office sorting office, which of course has post vans going all over the countryside. And adjacent to this area is a sausage making factory - now that really is forward planning!

There are many people working on the estate, including in my own company, who live widely over the Yorkshire area - into Ryedale, across to Harrogate, down to Bradford and York, up to Teesside. These include many areas not already infected. A good few of my colleagues live on farms or part of their livelihood is in farming - so what are they to do to avoid this obvious danger of infection? They desperately don't want to bring it home with them!

I raised the issue with Defra a week ago, through the Thirsk Town Council - but the slaughtermen are still there, just parked more tidily. Why are they and our public protectors all so careless of the risk? I cannot think of many better ways of making sure an infection spreads than by locating a possible source right in the middle of lots of people who travel daily into the clean areas.

And what about public hygiene? There seems to be no provision of any kind of washing or toilet facility for this army of people, and not much sign of officialdom doing anything about that either.

So who is supposed to be protecting the environment? It really is time they got on with it.

Coun JOE SALMON

Thirsk Town Council.

Why bother?

Sir, - As keen moorland walkers, my friends and I are doing our bit by keeping away. But when I hear of a farmer who can't be fashed to retrieve his 40 or so sheep which have strayed into the forest where the paths are open, saying it's just not worth his while, I begin to wonder why we should bother.

JOHN BRELSTAFF

Thweng Way,

Guisborough.