Hard-hit South West farmers are facing further heartbreak after the government announced new levies on animal disease.

The Treasury is looking to generate around £120m extra a year from the countryside to pay for animal health and disease outbreaks.

It is expected that farmers will have to pay a tax on every animal they own.

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) has expressed its anger over the controversial proposals.

In a written statement, the organisation said: "The prospect of having to pay a £121m a year in animal disease levies will be greeted with dismay and disbelief by an industry reeling from the impact of foot-and-mouth disease and bluetongue.

"The NFU is prepared to talk with government about this - not least to secure savings which will reduce the amount that has to be raised from the industry - but only on the basis that responsibility for how the money is spent is genuinely shared.

"In any event, we are determined that the final bill will be a lot less than £121m."

News of the possible levies on animal disease came as Chancellor Alistair Darling announced his tax and spend proposals in Tuesday's Pre-Budget Report.

He told the Commons that the budget for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) would jump from £3.5bn to £3.96bn by 2010-11.

The extra money will be spent on tacking climate change, improving flood and coastal defences and enhancing the natural environment.

Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said: "We have much to do to protect our natural resources and secure our global climate over the next few years.

"This funding for the next three years will help us to make progress in protecting our environment now, before it's too late."

The British farming industry has endured a miserable couple of months, with the foot-and-mouth and bluetongue outbreaks costing it millions of pounds in lost revenues.