SIR — Mr Ian Pedler (Your Letters May 22) proposes that all staghunting should be banned and that deer management on Exmoor and the Quantocks "should be overseen by a government-appointed body" overseen by DEFRA to "guarantee that adequate funding is made available".

So yet another Quango paid for by the taxpayers with opportunities for its members to "claim expenses".

And there will be hollow laughter from farmers at the suggestion that DEFRA will "guarantee' the finding after the recent scandal of the farm payments.

Mr Pedler quotes Dr Jochen Langbein, who has long advocated the German practice of nationalising deer management.

But at least he is a realist when he points to the difficulty in getting the many owners over whose land the red deer roam to agree to such a course.

There are 550 owners and tenants of land on Exmoor. The overwhelming majority of them, including the Exmoor National Park, which manages land owned by Somerset County Council, support the status quo which has existed for many years and resulted in the finest and healthiest heard of red deer in the United Kingdom.

The exception is the National Trust, whose council, without consultation or proper discussion, banned staghunting on its estate in reliance on the discredited Bateson report.

The landowners and farmers are the people who keep and nurture the deer in spite of considerable loss to themselves, as deer, though beautiful, are destructive creatures causing much damage to crops and fences.

Most of them do not hunt themselves but support the activities of the hunt.

Mr Pedler complains of the "stranglehold" of hunting interests. But without the support of the landowners and farmers there would be no hunting.

Finally, I can assure Mr Pedler that the Devon and Somerset Staghounds will not "resume their traditional deer control methods un-hindered by legal interference".

Ever since the Hunting Act came into force, the hunt has faithfully followed its terms and will continue to do so.

That it has been as successful as it has is due to the dedication of the hunt staff and the support of farmers and landowners.

But it has made deer management more difficult, and the sooner it is repealed the better in the interests of the deer, who are suffering from increased poaching and wounding from shooting.

Sir Robin Dunn,

Allerford.