A BARLICK butcher made his own views on the latest beef scare known this week - much to the amusement of his customers and other passers-by.

Banning beef on the bone was the final straw for Stephen Bell and the many regulars who frequent his small shop on Walmsgate, Barnoldswick. So, just hours before the ban came into force at midnight on Monday, Steve let people know just what he thinks of the barmy bureaucrats and their knee-jerk reactions.

On his shop window he drew a very down-in-the mouth British bulldog with the caption: "Wot - no bones!". For under the new Government regulations he isn't even allowed to give away beef bones as a treat for his customers' pet dogs.

And on the blackboards outside his shop were more cutting comments. One read: "Smoke, drink, take drugs - but don't eat beef!".

Another urged customers to: "Order mad-free turkey now," and yet another promised: "Mad cow, mad lamb, mad pork, bulls**t!" - most customers getting the messsage.

Steve, who has run the Walmsgate shop for the past four years, told the Herald: "You have to have a sense of humour, you can't let it all get to you.

"I've had some good responses from people today, not just customers but people who were passing the shop. They've been coming in and saying 'Well done!'. Everybody's been laughing about it."

"Most of my customers are regulars and a lot of them are elderly - this has been a butcher's shop since 1939. They've been eating beef all their life and they're not going to stop now, but they don't like being told what they can and can't eat."

Like many local shopkeepers, Steve prides himself on his quality of service and knowing his customers individually.

In many cases that has meant slipping a nice beef bone in with their order for their pet dogs - something which customers have really appreciated.

Now he isn't even allowed to do that even although, as he pointed out, heaven only knows what goes into the average can of dog food.

He added that what people eat should be left up to them. All the information about possible health risks, however small, should be available but people should still be left with a choice - not a ban.

For example, everyone knows that cigarettes pose a serious health risk and every packet carries a warning, but people still have the choice.

"All my beef is bought from a local farm and I believe British beef is the safest in the world," he said. "You don't know what you're getting with beef from abroad."

At least there was some good news on that front this week, with the news that the Government is to ban all imports of European beef unless it is subjected to the same rigorous tests and standards as British beef.

But many in the hard-hit British beef industry have called the move too little too late.

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