A new-born lamb can claim to be the luckiest 'baa' none after its life was spared at an abattoir.

The lamb was unexpectedly born among a flock of 50 sheep that had been taken for slaughter.

Under strict Government rules, all animals taken to the abattoir should be killed but the slaughtermen could not face putting the lamb and its mother to death.

Instead, David Gawthorpe, director of Spenborough Abattoir in Liversedge, made a plea for clemency to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

He employed Stephen Lomax, a barrister who works for trade association the Association of Independent Meat Suppliers to put pressure on Defra.

And after a seven hour meeting, its officials decided to make an exceptional ruling and granted a licence to allow the animals to live.

The lamb, named Larry by workers before they realised it was a female, and its mother will be taken to a nearby farm once a Defra vet has passed both animals as being disease-free.

A delighted Mr Gawthorpe said: "About 50 sheep came in, we did not know one was pregnant.

"Then one of the lads said it had given birth. The vet said we had to kill them but we refused and so did everyone else point blank.

"Everything has a life and should be given a chance to life. It was a new-born, fit and well and so helpless.

"It's good news - it just shows what can be done."

Mr Gawthorpe, who has worked in the meat industry since the age of ten, criticised stringent bureaucracy, which he said did not take account of such situations.

He said: "The legislation has gone mad. There should be measures in place when something like this happens.

"The bureaucrats in Brussels cannot see what they are doing to the meat industry."

A Defra spokesman confirmed an exceptional licence had been granted to enable the ewe and lamb to escape slaughter and be moved to a farm.

The Defra spokesman said: "In these unusual circumstances we were asked to issue a special licence for these animals to be removed from the premises in question.

"A vet assessed the situation and it was decided that the animals could be moved. They are now on a local farm."