Badger Cull roll-out postponed – but will return to Gloucester and Somerset
A potential badger cull across 10 further counties in England has been postponed by the government, but culling will continue in Somerset and Gloucestershire, it has been announced today.
A potential badger cull across 10 further counties in England has been postponed by the government, but culling will continue in Somerset and Gloucestershire, it has been announced today.
Secretary of State Owen Paterson told Parliament that the government was listening to advice from the Independent Expert Panel Report and wished to ‘perfect’ the culling technique before rolling it out to other areas.
Dominic Dyer, CEO of the Badger Trust and Policy Advisor to Care for the Wild, said:
“In one sense this announcement is great news, as the lives of thousands of badgers have just been saved. There has been a massive, peaceful but determined opposition movement to this killing spree shown by protest marches across the country, and this has clearly paid off.
“The government is clearly in full retreat. They had hoped to cull badgers in 12 counties this year, so to only be culling in two is a victory of sorts. But why continue at all? Culling is cruel, expensive and won’t work. The government should call it off completely, and come to the table so we can plan a way of beating bTB which will actually be effective.”
Mr Dyer added that the Badger Trust will be looking to take a Judicial Review case to the High Court to stop any further badger culling.
“Has there even been a government policy that has so blindly, so arrogantly, pushed on despite all the evidence showing that it won’t work and that it isn’t necessary?,” he added.
“In just the last week we’ve been presented with more false arguments and untruths. TB will cost £1 billion over 10 years? Really? Prove it, the maths doesn’t add up. TB can only be beaten by killing wildlife? Really? Wales has cut the number of TB cattle slaughtered by nearly half in four years, without a cull. The Ireland cull shows that culling works? Really? A BBC investigation has just showed that there is no evidence to justify that claim. Oh, and cats are spreading TB to humans because of badgers? Give me a break, that’s outrageous scaremongering.”
Owen Paterson committed to rolling out the cull to further areas in the future. Dominic Dyer added:
“Where’s the sense? Better farming practices including controlled cattle movements, better testing and better biosecurity are clearly working. Combine these measures with a long term badger and cattle vaccination programme and we will beat this disease, without having to kill any badgers. We desperately need the government to stop pushing ahead with a political non-science based culling policy which is leading to the senseless destruction of badgers and open their eyes to what will actually help farmers and wildlife alike.
“ We do welcome the commitment to creating vaccination ‘buffer zones’ and wish to see it roll out to other areas. The government will now be under huge pressure to provide farmers with a vaccination option in areas where there won’t be a cull for many years, and we’re very happy to help them do this.”
Care for the Wild is a wildlife charity dedicated to Rescue, Protect and Defend wildlife in the UK and abroad. For more information see www.careforthewild.com
