OKAY, it's time to say enough is enough and stop this barmy policy of killing and burning any animal suspected of being within a million miles of foot and mouth.

I've largely kept quiet about the disease because I'm no scientist and can't preach about the best way to eradicate it. But, after watching countless pieces of news footage, I reckon our politicians are doing more harm than good.

There have been thousands of rotting carcasses lying on farms across the country waiting for disposal.

Local people don't want them to be buried because that may create a health risk in the soil, while the fumes from the funeral pyres are also thought to be carcinogenic. But you can't exactly leave these corpses lying about either.

It seems obvious that this policy of destruction is a knee-jerk one borne out of panic. Vaccination would have been difficult, but would surely be a more civilised, and possibly safer, way.

Here in Bucks, our county council has come under fire from Government ministers for refusing to open up all the footpaths. Councillors say they know best and have kept the majority of paths closed to save Bucks from this "terrible disease".

Noble sentiments indeed, but I liked the letter in last week's Free Press from the chap who asked why golf courses, forestry land and mountain bike areas all stayed open while footpaths were closed. He said people were angry because there was no consistent ruling, and he's right.

The sheer panic is absurd. If you think I'm being flippant, ask yourself what will happen if one of these human foot and mouth cases is confirmed.

Are they going to kill and burn the sufferer? Presumably the risk of contagion will still exist if the disease mutates to infect humans.

I suspect they'll quarantine sufferers if that scenario ever happens. No doubt, if human infection becomes common, our Bucks county councillors will insist on shutting off roads to contain the disease even if it hasn't reached our area yet. But, of course, they won't shut off private roads or golf courses.

My advice would be to quarantine all of our nation's politicians while the crisis continues, and leave the more sensible people to solve it.