17/09/2012

First Badger Cull License Issued

Despite a decade long trial on the benefits of badger culling concluding there were only modest benefits, the first licence allowing farmers to shoot the animals, in an attempt to reduce cattle TB, is to be issued on Monday.

Ministers are pressing ahead with plans to cull badgers in two areas of the South West, amid pressure from farmers, and the licensing body, Natural England, said the cull would go ahead in Gloucestershire, where cases are high.

Some wild badgers can become infected with the bacteria that causes bovine TB, which they can then pass on to cattle.

Natural England is about to issue the licence for Gloucestershire, while a second, for Somerset, is still being assessed.

The first cull is expected to begin with days or weeks in a precise area of West Gloucestershire which is being kept secret.

(H)


Related UK National News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

01 March 2005
Badger cull considered in plans to tackle bovine TB
The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has warned that badgers could be culled in order to stop the spread of bovine tuberculosis (TB). Defra stressed that scientific, as well as other evidence, was "vital" to solving the problem.
28 August 2015
Govt Announces Badger Cull To Be Extended Into Dorset
The Government has announced a badger cull used to tackle bovine tuberculosis (TB) in Somerset and Gloucestershire has been extended to Dorset. The National Farmers Union (NFU) welcomed the move, although stated its disappointment that the policy had not been applied further.
02 December 2013
Gloucestershire Badger Cull Fails To Meet Target
The pilot cull of badgers in West Gloucestershire has not met the 70% target set out by the government. Official figures have revealed that in the additional five weeks and three days of culling allowed, only 213 badgers were killed, bringing the total number to 921. Only 40% were culled during the operation, which ended on Saturday 30 November.
04 September 2013
Badger Cull Protesters Out Overnight In Gloucestershire
Protesters have spent the night in west Gloucestershire over concerns that the controversial process of a badger cull, which began in Sussex last week, was due to begin in the area. It is uncertain whether the cull has begun in Gloucestershire, but some 100 protesters spent the night in the area in an effort to either witness or disrupt the action.
27 August 2013
Badger Cull Begins In Somerset
The National Farmer's Union (NFU) have confirmed that a controversial badger cull has begun in Somerset. It is understood that some 5,000 badgers are expected to be killed in six weeks in an effort to control the spread of bovine TB, which it is claimed is spread to cattle from infected badgers.