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It's been such a long time since I typed the name "Jim Shannon" that I was beginning to have withdrawal symptoms. Then as I flicked through today's written answers I found the DUP MLA for Strangford asking the Agriculture Minister Michelle Gildernew "if she will consider reintroducing the 'fox bounty', to control the rise in fox numbers and their impact on wildlife?"

This prompted a discussion about how hunters used to claim the "fox bounty" before it ended in the mid seventies. The general consensus is that you had to hand over the fox's tongue to the authorities to get your money. However one source says that north of the border it was the tongue, whilst south of the border it was the tail, meaning that you could indulge in a bit of cross border double jobbing (or should that be double foxing?). How much did you used to get per fox? Can anyone out there remember?

Anyway is the bounty coming back? Not if Michelle Gildernew has anything to do with it. She tells him the bounty proved ineffective, and she doesn't believe there is any overriding need to bring it back.

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