Now that Oliver Heald, the Solicitor-General, has told the House of Commons that eradicating the grey squirrel is ‘no longer considered feasible’, we must be prepared across Dorset for these animals to spread far and wide.

Parks and green spaces in London and many cities are overrun by these animals. They are appearing here, too, but not in great numbers yet. The government is reported to be scrapping laws which require people to report the presence of ‘greys’ on their land so that they can be destroyed.

So the legal requirement to report them will be effectively redundant. The ‘greys’ damage trees by stripping bark, attack bird feeders, dig up plants, especially bulbs, and even gain access to lofts and attics where they chew at timber and pipes.

If the ‘greys’ get a grip on Dorset the population of our native red squirrels will diminish even faster.

Ron Kirby

Dorchester