Government extends controversial badger cull into Dorset
The government says “strong action” is required but opponents call the plans “chaotic”. The heated debate over the effectiveness of badger culls wears on as the cull is extended into Dorset.
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In an effort to continue the government’s 25 year strategy to limit the spread of TB, farming Minister George Eustice emphasised that “strong action” was needed, as the controversial scheme progresses. Eustice stated, “Our approach of dealing with the disease in cattle and wildlife has worked overseas and is supported by leading vets.”
Activists have condemned the decision to include Dorset in the cull, with Brian May’s charity ‘Save Me’ tweeting their dismay at the confirmed plans.
BADGER CULL ANNOUNCED Somerset, Glos and Dorset. @saveme will continue to fight for badgers #failingbadgercull pic.twitter.com/VVB2OvPeb4
— Brian May’s Save Me (@AnneatSaveMe) August 28, 2015
With between 615 and 835 badgers set to be culled in Dorset over a six week period, activists have called into question the need to kill in such large numbers, quoting Defra’s own data which suggests that 94.8 per cent of badgers pose no risk.
The government insists it is a pragmatic solution, needed to prevent the multi million pound losses that occurred last year after more than 26,000 cattle were slaughtered. Opponents argue that vaccinations should be pursued, with the Badger Trust Chief Executive Dominic Dyer stating that the schemes “comprehensively failed” to be humane and effective.
Watch: Inside the badger cull - a whistleblower talks
Dr Toni Shephard, head of policy and research at the League against Cruel Sports echoes this opinion, claiming “it is a death knell for common sense, all the current evidence heavily suggests that bTB is predominantly spread between cattle, not from badgers to cattle.”
The cull, which has been labelled as “chaotic”, will test the efficacy, humaneness and safety of shooting badgers at night to reduce TB in cattle. In Somerset this year, a sufficient number of badgers were killed this year to lead to expected reductions in TB in cattle.
The government has stated how such precautions are essential to protect the future of dairy and beef industries, with the move being welcomed by Andy Foot, a Dorset beef farmer, “It is to be congratulated that we at last got it rolled out to at least another county.”
An independent expert panel concluded that controlled shooting of badgers in the first year of the cull was not effective or humane, with the RSPCA expressing their ‘”alarm” at the decision.