Dovedale Sheep Dog Trials may go ahead as planned
ORGANISERS of the Dovedale Sheep Dog Trials say they are tentatively progressing with plans to stage the event this summer.
The annual event, which takes place in Blore Pastures, had been set to host the English National Sheep Dog Trials in July last year, but it was postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Chairman Nigel Davis has told the News Telegraph the event is currently scheduled to take place on July 29, 30 and 31 - but he is currently unsure how the event will shape up if it can go ahead.
He said: “Whether the trials proceed is still very much in the hands of the gods.
“The International Sheep Dog Society is very keen for them to go ahead if possible but time will tell.
“Even if they are able to proceed it seems likely they will be a great deal different from the English National held on the same trials field in 2008.
“It is highly unlikely we will be able to have crowds, trade stands, a craft marquee and so on.
“Indeed, it is likely that even the dog runners will simply arrive, go onto the course at their appointed time, and once their run is completed they will have to depart.
“The only people allowed on the field, in addition to the dog handler, would be the judges, time-keepers, commentator, shepherds, and other ‘key workers’ e.g. course director, first aid and the like.
“If matters do have to proceed in this way, the International Sheep Dog Society is hoping to be able to provide live-streaming of the trials so that those who wish to follow the day’s action will be able to do so online.”
Mr Davis promised to update readers as soon as a further commitment can be made.
DERBYSHIRE Police have handed out around 900 fines for Covid breaches since the start of the pandemic.
Of these, five are for the most serious breaches, including illegal raves and house parties, which carried fines of £10,000 each.
Hardyal Dhindsa, Derbyshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, has said that “constant changes to the coronavirus legislation, and the significant disparities between this legislation and guidance, remain a continual challenge”.
In January, the force reviewed all of its fixed penalty notices issued for Covid breaches following a complaint from two women fined £200 each for meeting up at Foremark Reservoir, just five miles from their respective homes.
The force has been accused of a “heavy handed” approach to fines for Covid-19 breaches and faced criticism early on in the pandemic for its use of a drone compilation video highlighting walkers breaching lockdown in the Peak District.
Mr Dhindsa said: “Fixed-penalty notices have been scrutinised in order to identify cases where they have been issued inappropriately, and in these instances, those affected have received written notification of the withdrawal; this system has been in place since the Constabulary started to issue fixedpenalty notices in March 2020.
“It is important to note, in the overwhelming majority of cases, incidents are being dealt with appropriately and officers are using their discretion and professional judgment, in the correct way.”
A few weeks ago, official statistics showed Derbyshire police had issued 301 fines for Covid breaches in the first nine months of the pandemic - a figure which now appears to have tripled, after two months.
In January police had appeared to insinuate the total number of fines was now far higher, saying at the time: “The figures quoted in this release are a snapshot of 2020 and are clearly during a time prior to the current situation the country finds itself in where stricter rules are in place.”
It says officers have been using and continue to use the four Es approach (explain, engage, encourage, enforce) with enforcement being a “last resort for the most serious and blatant breaches of the regulations”.
Mr Dhindsa said that there were currently 92 police incidents per day linked to the Covid-19 pandemic, down from 115 per day in the first wave.
However, he says: “It must be noted that the current national lockdown is less stringent in terms of legislation, with many more people able to legitimately travel as a result of being classed as a key worker.”
He says police responses to Covid breaches account for around nine per cent of the force’s entire workload, the same amount linked to mental health and above that linked to domestic abuse (seven per cent).
Mr Dhindsa has revealed that there have been more than 250 case of Covid in the police force, with spikes in October, December and January in line with community infection rates.
Around nine per cent of the force is off with sickness absence or self-isolation requirements linked to Covid - it was below 20 per cent in March 2020, largely propelled by shielding. He said officers “have been asked to face those who have sought to use the threat of Covid-19 as a weapon and have been coughed on and spat at”.
Mr Dhindsa, alongside Derbyshire Chief Constable Rachel Swann, is calling for police officers to be offered Covid-19 vaccines urgently.
He said this “will help prevent the transmission of the virus in the community, from police officers and staff conducting their essential roles, and also help to ensure that we can continue to provide an excellent service to the people and communities of Derbyshire”.