NEWS that the sheep are to return to the Forest in April under a new grazing agreement has not been welcomed by everyone.
A Parkend man who did not want to be named accused the powers that be of not listening to any other voices except those of the commoners and operating a 'closed shop'.
"It seems to me that being able to run sheep in the Forest is a privilege and not a right," he said.
"I found these people unreasonable and uncaring about their animals. They get all the benefits that farmers get yet they give nothing in return, unlike bona fide farmers who pay taxes.
"I reported a sheep that was in difficulty lambing beside the road to one well-known 'badger' in the hope that something would be done but when I drove past two days later I found the sheep and her lamb dead.
"They are a complete nuisance wandering onto the road but the commoners seem to be a law unto themselves and the police do nothing about it.
"When they wander into villages they are a menace and create no end of smell and flies and I for one would not like to see them back – and I believe many others feel the same.
"It simply isn't democratic to give in to these people all the time. There should be a proper assessment of the problem."
The Review called for opinions on the subject of bringing sheep back while the foot and mouth outbreak was rampant in the area. While many people raised issues such as the ones above, respondents were mainly in favour of the sheep returning.
The most widely held opinion was that the Forest would not be the same place without them.
•The new agreement. See Page 11.