Warwickshire Wildlife Trust 'aghast' at Government decision to cull 70,000 more badgers

The trust argues that culling is an outdated practice which will not solve the ongoing spread of bovine tuberculosis
Photo credit Steven Cheshire.Photo credit Steven Cheshire.
Photo credit Steven Cheshire.

A spokesperson for Warwickshire Wildlife Trust said the organisation is 'aghast' at the news the Government has given the go-ahead for the largest ever badger cull.

The cull will see more than 70,000 healthy badgers shot in an attempt to halt the spread of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) - a highly-infectious disease that affects cattle and puts huge economic pressure on farmers.

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For the first time, badger culling could take place in Warwickshire under Government licences.

Cases of bovine tuberculosis have substantially increased since the 1980s - but the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust does not believe that culling badgers will solve the problem.

A spokesperson for the trust said: "The move comes despite the government’s promise just six months ago to support badger vaccination and move away from shooting this protected species.

"The cull will result in the deaths of badgers that have been vaccinated by volunteers in government-funded programmes.

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"Warwickshire Wildlife Trust has written to MPs and published an open letter to farmers, expressing concern about the impact farmers face from bovine tuberculosis (bTB), but highlighting that culling badgers will not stop the spread of the disease.

"The trust has huge sympathy for farmers affected by bTB, as they are being seriously let down by continual U-turns on the policy but so is our wildlife which is at a critical point itself.

"Expanding culling undermines the current effort of vaccinating badgers as a non-lethal tool but also removes funding that could be added to the recent investment into research in seeking a cattle vaccine."

Warwickshire Wildlife Trust's CEO, Dr Ed Green, said: “This is a staggering government U-turn and one which will result in thousands of healthy badgers being shot across England this autumn.

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“In March — following a review by Professor Godfray — the government promised to move away from lethal control. However, after seven years of badger culling, the government has failed to act on its own advice and is expanding its culling programme into new regions including Oxfordshire, Leicestershire and Warwickshire into what will be the biggest cull yet.

“We are at a critical turning point for our natural world and this latest U-turn should set alarm bells ringing — culling is an outdated policy that seeks to eradicate protected wildlife rather than addressing the real problem which is the main cause of bovine tuberculosis (bTB): cattle-to-cattle infection.

“Recent news that investment in a cattle vaccine is underway is welcome — but it is not enough. Moving the culling into areas where badger vaccinations have been taking place will also undermine this vital and under-funded work.”

This autumn’s cull brings the overall total of badgers shot since culling began in 2013 to more than 170,000 badger deaths.

This is around 35 per cent of the UK badger population.

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The cull began in 2013 and is expected to continue for a further four years.

Warwickshire Wildlife Trust is asking people to take action today and write to their local MP to let them know they don't want a badger cull in their area.