Silence of the lambs: Anger as ex Defra adviser says sheep ‘have got to go’ from UK’s hills

Ben Goldsmith said sheep should not be subsidised, tweeting: ‘The sheep have got to go.’

The animals are ‘the principal obstacle standing in the way of meaningful nature recovery in Britain’s national parks’ (Rex)

A former adviser for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has sparked anger after saying sheep “have got to go” from the UK’s hillsides.

Ben Goldsmith, brother of ex Tory MP Zac Goldsmith, said the animals are “the principal obstacle standing in the way of meaningful nature recovery in Britain’s national parks and other agriculturally marginal landscapes”.

Mr Goldsmith, 42, believes sheep should not be subsidised, and claimed the UK is “impoverished of wildflowers, birdsong, wildlife” due to the “forensic grazing by tens of millions of sheep”.