Bluetongue may hit county show

9:24am Friday 22nd August 2008

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FEARS are growing that Westmorland County Show could be badly affected because of uncertainty over the Bluetongue vaccination programme.

Organisers admitted a question mark hangs over the livestock element of the event because no firm date has been given for Cumbria to be included in the Bluetongue Protection Zone.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has said this will happen “shortly.”

But show organisers say they need more certainty and that if Cumbria remains outside the protection zone, potentially fewer animals would be allowed to be shown.

Along with Northumberland, Cumbria will be the final county in England to be given the vaccine for the midge-borne disease, which affects sheep and cattle and has killed thousands of livestock on the continent in the past year.

DEFRA says the zone will not be extended before September 1, “unless the re-emergence of circulating disease requires it.”

And with Westmorland County Show set to take place on Thursday, September 11, organisers are unsure what the next few weeks hold in store. The event attracts thousands of visitors to the area every year and is seen as a ‘shop window’ for local livestock.

Christine Knipe, chief executive, said: “There is still no guarantee that the zone extension will happen on the first of September. The sooner we know a date, the sooner everybody can make arrangements. With so many shows being cancelled, it is all the more important that the show goes ahead.

“Westmorland County Show is a fantastic shop window for agriculture generally, and for Cumbrian agriculture in particular. If we cannot have this show with livestock, it will be very disappointing.”

Mrs Knipe said the interest in the show was as strong as ever.

She added: “From an organisational point of view, we are delighted with the numbers we have been receiving and arrangements are continuing as normal.

“We are guaranteeing that if anybody is prevented from attending because of the Bluetongue situation, we will refund all the entrance fees so we are actively encouraging people to enter as normal.”