Posters advertising the forthcoming March For Liberty And Livelihood, which have sprouted alongside main roads, indicate at least some local farmers support this planned demonstration.

Would one of them, or a spokesman from organisers the Countryside Alliance, please explain the purpose of this march?

Even though the march is planned to take place just before a crucial Commons debate on the hunting issue, the organisers claim it is not exclusively about a possible ban on hunting.

Most of the population would not wish to deny farmers and other countryfolk the liberty to earn their own livelihood, provided that, like the rest of us, they abide by the laws of the land, notably those concerning animal welfare and environmental pollution and that they earn their living without constantly demanding handouts from the taxpayer to subsidise their chosen, and presumably preferred, occupations and/or lifestyle.

-Peter Allen, Chute Avenue, High Salvington