‘Diversity, Equality, EX-clusion’ – The full, shocking facts of how Whitehall’s plans will kill off a living national treasure, with us for 3,500 years, IRREVERSIBLY
Plus, what GB News readers can do to prevent this tragedy
Montage © Facts4EU.Org 2026
How Whitehall’s climate and biodiversity targets will do the exact opposite for an iconic English symbol
Some readers will have seen rumours about threats to the iconic Dartmoor wild ponies enjoyed by so many on holidays to the West Country. On Tuesday one of the Government’s ‘nature’ quangos vigorously denied the claims but the fight is intensifying.
With in-depth research from Facts4EU, The Campaign for an Independent Britain, and Stand for Our Sovereignty, the Special Projects team at GB News brings readers the full, unvarnished, and shocking facts.
The crisis developing in Dartmoor is likely to influence what happens in the country’s other National Parks, from the New Forest to Cumbria. This report also puts Whitehall under the spotlight and poses some awkward questions for the quango ‘Natural England’.
Finally, we provide readers with information about the petition that is now rocketing. Despite the official denials, campaigners say the Dartmoor Pony may soon be effectively killed off by Whitehall, after surviving without bureaucrats for millennia.
When a Government Quango starts sounding like a ‘BBC Fact-Check service’…
On Tuesday a Government Quango which many had not heard of came out with an extraordinary rebuttal of claims that it was about to cull the Dartmoor Pony. Written as ‘Claim’ and then ‘Our position’, it sounded a little like a form of BBC ‘fact-check’ service.
This special report sets out the information and asks: “If the rule-maker gives you only one choice, who is to blame? The person having no other choice, or the rule-maker who created the only choice?”
How many Dartmoor ponies are there?
There are currently thought to be around 1,000 breeding mares on Dartmoor, which is deemed to be the minimum for a barely sustainable population.
The chart below shows the current position on the left, with the effects of the new plans to the right. Even if the lowest restrictions are applied by Natural England at ‘CS1’, this would result in a drop of two-thirds, and would have the effect of wiping out this iconic breed.
Even the best scenario would be devastating
© Brexit Facts4EU.Org 2026 - click to enlarge
The reason behind the change is simple. Dartmoor ponies were never counted as being amongst the livestock grazing the moor. In January 2022, however, the Quango wrote with a new grazing contract which included ponies. When this goes into effect, farmers will have no choice other than to prioritise sheep and cattle. Put simply, ponies just don’t pay their way.
No new contracts were supposed to be negotiated until 2027, when the Dartmoor Land Use Management Group reports on its recommendations from DEFRA’s Review and when the best grazing densities for Dartmoor have been identified.
Former Secretary of State Lord Redwood spoke exclusively to us
“Natural England describes itself as dedicated to "recovering nature for Growth, Health and Security". The word “Growth” was added last year under pressure from the Labour government. Its prime aims are to tackle climate change and arrest "nature decline".
“Most of its spending is on a large staff of almost 3,000 (2,974 last year). It has a well-paid Chairman and a well-paid Chief Executive, needing a Head of Strategy, a Chief Operating Officer, a Chief Scientist, a Chief Business Manager and a Chief Legal Executive. All of these are on large six figure salaries.
“Despite all this talent, last year it failed to hit its CO2 reduction target, used more water and generated more waste when it had pledged to reduce them, failed to cut its use of landfill for waste, and 80% of its fleet were petrol and diesel vehicles generating CO2, in addition to its staff flying 85,000 km.”
Public anger mounts
Unexpectedly, Natural England began negotiations to enter the commons into the Countryside Stewardship scheme (CS1-3 in our chart above), with contracts starting earlier. The danger is that farmers will start reducing pony numbers this September - unless public anger forces a change in policy.
Last month a petition was launched which has now rocketed to more than 130,000 signatures. GB News readers can read and sign it here.
Farmers and other ‘Commoners’ say they were already hurting
Dartmoor’s farmers used to receive what was known as the Basic Payments Scheme (BPS) which was available for Less-Favoured Area (LFA) grazing livestock farms. In 2022/3 this was removed, with catastrophic effects on farms’ viabilities as going concerns. Below is what happened.
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The Government’s own Independent Enquiry
Here is what the independent enquiry said about the farmers’ financial situation:
“It would be fair to say that at present Dartmoor’s farmers do not know how they are going to make up for the loss of BPS.”
- The independent Fursdon Report, 2025
In fact, this independent enquiry was very critical of Natural England in its report, making statements such as:
“We are concerned that, even now, it [Natural England (‘NE’)] may not appreciate how completely its relationship with commoners has broken down on Dartmoor.”
“This was insufficient to maintain relationships, provide a reasonable level of support and advice to agreement holders and, ultimately, to achieve NE’s statutory environmental objectives.”
“NE’s local advisers have responded to this situation by becoming increasingly inward-looking and target driven, rather than by reaching out and building effective partnerships.”
“It will take time and a large amount of effort for NE to rebuild trust and respect on Dartmoor.”
What are the local people asking for in terms of protections?
The local view, widely accepted, is that the current level of around 1,000 breeding mares is the minimum viable population to retain the crucial genetic diversity that has evolved over thousands of years, in response to the ponies’ survival in the harsh moorland environment.
Like deer, the semi-wild Dartmoor Hill Ponies should run in the background of these grazing contracts, say the locals, and they should not be included along with cattle and sheep. They are also asking for Protected status, to guarantee the species’ survival.
The supreme irony is that it is the ponies which are solely responsible for keeping down the invasive long grass which would otherwise destroy the moorland flora.
Rare and endangered status of Dartmoor Hill ponies
The Semi-wild Dartmoor Hill Pony is already listed on the Watchlist of the Rare Breed Survival Trust (RBST) and the lists of British Breeds Revival Trust and DEFRA’s Native At Risk list. It is also classed as ‘Endangered’ by the UN’s International Food and Agriculture Organisation.
Ultimately DEFRA is accountable to the UN if such species decline on their watch. The UK would then be in contravention of its COP15 Goals and Targets to address biodiversity decline.
“Save the ponies,” Lord Redwood told us
“The wild ponies of the New Forest, Exmoor, Dartmoor and Snowdonia all have a right to a life and are widely admired by tourists. Ponies are not the enemy of biodiversity. They help create and sustain it. Plans to remove most of them along with a majority of our farm animals that help feed us is a net zero madness and cruelty. How does it help the world if carbon dioxide is produced by foreign cattle whilst most of the UK cattle are killed off?
“The New Forest, Dartmoor and Exmoor ponies are an important part of our landscape, traditions and nature. Natural England who wants rid of them is busy introducing more beavers into our landscape. Beavers pull down trees that Natural England likes planting, and block streams and rivers that can disrupt drainage and cause flooding. So why does Natural England have such a distorted view of which parts of nature to promote? Their politically correct landscape will be bad for farmers and the tourist trade, whilst Natural England staff merrily fly round the world and drive ICE vehicles with little thought for their contribution to world CO2.”
Brexit Facts4EU.Org, Thurs 11 June 2026
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