Monday 8th September

Monday, 8 September 2025 06:00

By Steve Haigh

Farmers in Somerset will be driving their tractors to protest at Labour’s annual Party Conference in Liverpool later this month. A Somerset animal rescue centre says it’s dealing with a surge in the number of large dog breeds being surrendered or rehomed. The George Inn in Ilminster has announced that it will be reopening to customers on Monday, September 15th...and more

Farmers in Somerset will be driving their tractors to Labour’s annual Party Conference in Liverpool later this month to protest about the government’s planned changes to inheritance tax. The demonstration, organised by Farmers to Action, will see farmers from all around the UK converge on Labour’s conference, which starts in Liverpool on September 28th. They want the government to scrap the inheritance tax changes that will impose a 20% tax on inherited agricultural assets worth more than £1 million from April next year.

A Somerset animal rescue centre says it’s dealing with a surge in the number of large dog breeds being surrendered or rehomed. Happy Landings Animal Rescue in Shepton Mallet says 200 big dogs, including bully breeds and German Shepherds, have been brought to it so far this year. A spokesperson blames the increase on owners not being prepared to give the training, exercise, and care that big dogs need.

A breast cancer charity is starting new monthly help sessions in Yeovil. Breast Cancer Now holds its first “Living with Secondary Breast Cancer” session on Tuesday, September 16th at the Westlands Entertainment venue.

Heritage train rides will soon start running out of Shillingstone station in North Dorset. It follows the completion of work to re-lay the track and sidings that were once part of the Somerset and Dorset line. The North Dorset Railway group says steam and diesel rides will run along 780 meters of track, passing over the Lamb House Bridge, before returning to the station platform.

The Ilminster and District Lions Club has thanked the people who donated items to send to Ukraine. Since the start of the war with Russia, Ilminster Lions has sent 31 boxes of personal care products, baby clothes and medical supplies to the people of Ukraine.

Drivers are again using Junction 26 on the M5 in Somerset. The junction was shut in June for the Chelston Link road to be resurfaced.

The George Inn in Ilminster has announced that it will reopen to customers on Monday, September 15th.

More from News

Friday 13th March

The first of the new medium lift helicopters being built by Leonardo in Yeovil for the RAF will be delivered in 2031. Somerset Council has launched a public consultation on planned new charges at its two hundred public car parks. More women in Somerset are said to be taking up walking football... and more
Thursday 12th March

A Yeovil headteacher says he’s concerned about plans to stop giving school holiday food vouchers to families on low incomes. The owner of Yeovil Town is calling on fans to be patient as he continues his overhaul of the National League side. A high voltage fault is being blamed for plunging 1700 homes into darkness in the Ilminster area... and more
Wednesday 11th March

Plans have been submitted to convert two properties in Yeovil into houses of multiple occupation. A new court date has been announced for a Yeovil man charged with attempted murder. An engineer who has worked at the Leonardo factory in Yeovil for 40-years has won a top industry award... and more
Tuesday 10th March

Police say a fire at the former Oscar Mayer food factory in Chard was started deliberately. Yeovil College says it would have been adversely affected had Leonardo not won the contract to build new medium-lift helicopters. A seven-foot dragon will be visiting towns and villages in our area during the next few weeks to promote Somerset Day... and more
Monday 9th March

Two Wildcat helicopters from 815 Squadron at RNAS Yeovilton have arrived in Cyprus to help protect RAF Akrotiri from further Iranian drone strikes. New figures show that 40 people were killed on Avon and Somerset’s roads in the last 12-months. A Somerset man has been recalling the day 60-years ago when he was a passenger on the last train on the Somerset and Dorset Railway... and more
Friday 6th March

Defence Minister Luke Pollard has been explaining why it took the government so long to confirm a contract for the Leonardo in Yeovil to build new medium lift helicopters for the RAF. Police are investigating a break in at a pet shop in Ilminster. Somerset Council is to stop using red ink on council tax reminder letters... and more
Thursday 5th March

Two military helicopters from RNAS Yeovilton are being sent to Cyprus to help bolster UK’s defences amid the US-Israel war with Iran. Yeovil Town Council is seeking legal advice over the closure of the hyper acute stroke unit at Yeovil Hospital. Flood warnings have been lifted on the Somerset Levels... and more
Wednesday 4th March

A man has died in a fire in Wincanton. Somerset Council is planning further cuts of twenty-one million pounds to help balance its books. A campaign to raise £30,000 for a minibus has been launched in Chard... and more