WORCESTERSHIRE and Herefordshire farmers have been celebrating after a European directive ruled they can spend more than two hours a day on their tractors.

Worcestershire MEP Liz Lynne and West Midlands MEP Philip Bushill-Matthews spent hours in meetings in Strasbourg battling to stop restrictions being placed on drivers' hours.

Now the NFU has thanked them and their colleagues for their support after a vote taken on the Physical Agents Directive accepted farming and forestry should be exempt for the next five years.

"We're obviously pleased and relieved to see this absurd piece of legislation has been thwarted," said NFU regional committee member James Walton.

"To be honest, it's amazing it's got this far.

"We'd like to thank all the region's MEPs for their efforts in opposing this proposal and in particular Liz Lynne who was involved in negotiating the exclusion for agriculture."

The proposal, which aimed to limit exposure to body vibration, was branded "totally impractical" by the union.

Chiefs claimed there was no scientific evidence linking tractor use with health problems.

They said the directive would have placed an unworkable burden on farmers' businesses.