WEST Devon and Torridge MP John Burnett this week branded the Government decision not to hold a full public inquiry into the foot and mouth crisis as 'crass hypocrisy'.

But an NFU spokesman said a public inquiry could take years — what was needed were speedy answers.

Environment secretary Margaret Beckett last week announced there would be three independent inquiries into the outbreaks which affected West Devon so badly.

One committee will investigate the lessons to be learned from the outbreak and the Government's handling of the crisis, another will carry out a scientific review of livestock diseases, how foot and mouth spread and the effectiveness of disease control policies. The third will cover the future of farming and food production.

Their findings will be reported to Prime Minister Tony Blair and Mrs Beckett during the coming year.

According to Mrs Beckett, it will be up to the chairman of each inquiry whether these findings will be made public.

Mr Burnett said the Government was 'absolutely, fundamentally wrong' to handle the issues in this way.

He said: 'I really feel the Government is grossly mistaken — it's crass hypocrisy not to have this out in the open.'

He said there were compelling reasons to hold a public inquiry.

'All individuals who have been affected, whether in agriculture, tourism or any other business, should have the opportunity to give evidence, and in the public domain, otherwise it's meaningless.'

Mr Burnett said the Government's policy of contiguous culling, the decision to build disposal pits at Aish Moor near Petrockstowe and its attitude to vaccination should all be investigated publicly.

'Those pyres that burned right across this constituency were awful, it was like being afflicted by a plague. We should be having a full public inquiry which is open and transparent, where justice can be seen to be done,' said Mr Burnett.

And Lisa Robertson, of the Heart of Devon campaign, which was spearheaded by TV personality Noel Edmonds of Jacobstowe, claimed the committee inquiries would be 'a complete waste of time'.

She said: 'They are all connected with Blair in some way, or the Labour party, so there's no independence. We want a full independent inquiry — nothing else will do.

'The fact that Beckett has stated categorically that certain parts of the inquiry will not be made public is totally unacceptable.'

But Ian Johnson, NFU regional spokesman, took a more cautious view.

He said: 'It's a very complicated issue. If you have a public enquiry, it takes years, costs millions and finally doesn't give you the answers you want anyway.

'With foot and mouth you haven't got the time, there is a real possibility the thing will return, even if it doesn't come back from the existing outbreak — it's a disaster waiting to happen again.

'You have to know what happens and why very quickly. That said, there should be every opportunity for people who have helpful evidence to come forward and give that evidence with impunity and in a public way.

'Unless things are totally transparent, they won't have any credibility.

'That is what we would wish to see — that doesn't necessarily amount to a full blown judicial inquiry.'

And Mr Johnson said the issue of a foot and mouth public inquiry had become a 'political football'.

'What we want is the truth, rather than political ping-pong or a witch-hunt. What we desperately need are answers and solutions. We want to make sure people who should be heard, are heard, and that nothing is brushed under the carpet.'

Devon County Council has also given a cautious welcome to the news.

Brian Greenslade, council chairman, said: 'What is important is that a robust and rigorous investigation into the handling of this crisis takes place and takes place quickly, so we can learn any lessons to be learned.'

Cllr Greenslade welcomed the separate policy commission on the future of farming as 'very good news'.

'What our farmers urgently need is real and effective debate on the future of farming and a clear steer from the Government on their vision of the future for the rural economy.

'Devon's own inquiry into the foot and mouth outbreak will fit neatly with this process. It will now go ahead with the knowledge that our experiences and any conclusions we draw can be fed directly into one or other of the national inquiries,' he said.