Bear with us

The Government of Wales has told a little town in Breconshire to take down a statue of a bear. Bears, it seems, are a devolved matter in Wales, or perhaps statues, or possibly both. The national government has brought its weight down on Llanwrtyd Wells (population 850) after a driver apparently thought the bear was a real bear and swerved off the road, hitting a road-sign. But will removing the 10ft statue be enough? “How easy is a bush supposed a bear,” wrote Shakespeare, who knew a thing or two about bears. If he was right, as he surely was, then Llanwrtyd Wells must also root out every bush visible from the public carriageway. The locality is pleasantly bosky, with an estimated 11.3 such bushes for every head of population. Their removal would beggar the proud town. On the other hand, the statue of the bear has reared its ursine silhouette since time immemorial (2003), and no one else has admitted to taking it for flesh and fur. Perhaps a compromise could be agreed, a sign warning motorists: “Caution: no real bears.”