You don't know where it is, you can't follow it, you can't plan and can't figure out which way it's going. The alleged breach of slaughter rules occurred earlier on during the crisis when MAFF's Leeds office had responsibility for culling animals in North Yorkshire. A spokeswoman for MAFF Leeds office said she had heard nothing to support the allegations and believed staff had adhered to proper procedures. The vet said farmers had complained that MAFF had been high-handed and refused to work closely with the National Farmers' Union and local authorities. The feeling on the ground is that MAFF's getting a very negative response from farmers and local populations.
Local people feel deserted.
But a spokesman for the NFU in north-east England insisted that the union and ministry staff had a good working relationship in the area. The farm was placed under Form D restriction after it was visited by a feed lorry previously operating on infected premises in north-west England.