On January 22, I watched the Welsh farming programme Ffermio on S4C. It showed a devastated family witnessing the slaughter of a significant percentage of their dairy herd due to a positive TB result.

It was absolutely heartbreaking and deeply unsettling to watch them having to see their animals being shot on their own premises. These cattle would have been an enormous part of their lives. The fact that the family themselves has to assist in handling the animals for their slaughter was inhuman.

TB has been a problem in livestock for decades and the Welsh Government have been burying their heads in the sand for the last 40 years or so about the issue. There have been no positive steps forward in the control of TB and it is obvious, now, that wildlife are major carriers of the disease and are spreading it. How cruel is it that wildlife, badgers in particular, are having to suffer death themselves from the disease?

The Welsh Government should be ashamed of themselves in letting this devastation continue. Do they have no compassion? How can they allow farming families to suffer this mental anguish time and time again? They should all be made to watch this programme and put themselves in the farmers’ shoes. They have a duty of responsibility for ensuring that they look after the people of Wales.

Is it no wonder that the statistics for those involved in agriculture with mental health issues are rising rapidly? Ask any of the charities who offer support to the industry - they will tell you. Farming is already a very isolated occupation and the stresses associated with the whole issue of TB is having very detrimental effects on the farmers and their families.

This programme should be shown in English on mainstream television so that more of the general public are made aware of the total inadequacy of the present control system.

The whole approach towards TB needs a drastic rethink - exactly what vets, farmers and their Unions have been proposing for many years.

It’s an absolute disgrace that Mark Drakeford and his administration can allow this current, antiquated system of TB control to continue with no sign of improvement.

What is the Government’s response?

D Gareth Davies