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This week sheep have been causing a bit of a stir, with those both pro and anti trading arguments on social media. We discuss the tensions between where sheep are, should be, should not be and who decides, with environmentalist Ben Goldsmith and the National Sheep Association's Phil Stocker.
Farmers on Dartmoor say they've been told they must radically reduce the number of sheep and other livestock on common land if they want to remain in government schemes. Natural England has written to commons associations offering rollovers of existing Higher Level Stewardship Schemes, but farmers say these new agreements require the number of animals on the land in the summer must be reduced, on some commons by an average of 75%.
Many farmers here are watching what's happening in the Netherlands, where a farmers' party has stunned Dutch politics, and is set to be the biggest party in the upper house of parliament after provincial elections. The Farmer-citizen movement (BBB) was only set up in 2019 in the wake of widespread farmers' protests. As we reported last month, the Dutch government wants to reduce livestock numbers near protected countryside, to reduce emissions. It has said it will force buyouts of the 3,000 worst polluting farms, if voluntary measures fail. The Dutch PM described the result as a ‘clear message from voters’.
An investigation by the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority, the GLAA, has fund that hundreds of workers in meat processing, recruited from Nepal, were exploited and found to have paid £12,000 to find a job. Such fees are illegal in the UK.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.