Badger bloodbath
19,274 shot dead as toll of victims soars in Tories’ latest annual cull
A TOTAL of 19,274 badgers were slaughtered in the latest annual cull as the Tories accelerated their killing programme.
The bloodbath toll emerged yesterday in Government stats slipped out before MPs left for Christmas.
The six-week autumn carnage, intended to tackle TB in cattle, was 77% up on last year’s 10,886 victims. Badger Trust chief Dominic Dyer said: “This is the biggest slaughter of a protected species in memory.”
He slammed Environment Secre- tary Michael Gove’s bid to soften the Tory stance on animal welfare.
“His department licensed the cull so his claim to be a friend of animals is hollow,” he said. “No badger killed was tested for TB. Many died from a shooting method that means they take over five minutes to expire.”
Marksmen targeted 21 rural zones from Cornwall to Cheshire.
The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ report said contract cullers needed continued training “to maintain high standards of humaneness”. ben.glaze@mirror.co.uk