Mole man digs in his heels

Reporter: Marina Berry
Date published: 20 September 2010


SHAW molecatcher Peter Brown staged a demonstration after new European Union (EU) rules robbed him of his livelihood.

The 58-year-old is angry that his ability to make a living has been destroyed by new legislation which bans the use of strychnine to kill moles.

The poison has been used by molecatchers for 70 years, and Mr Brown took his protest to Rochdale Town Hall where he was backed by the UK Independence Party’s North West Euro-MP Paul Nuttall.

Mr Brown explained: “Moles are a pest because they push up soil which can then get into silage and cause potentially-fatal listeriosis in cattle and sheep. Humans who eat infected meat can catch listeria.”

Giving his support to the out-of-work molecatcher, Mr Nuttall said: “This is how the EU juggernaut rolls on without thought for those flattened by it.”


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