Badger cull ‘an excuse to commit wildlife crimes’

THE badger cull is fuelling hundreds of wildlife crimes every year, charities have warned.

Nearly 1,300 wildlife incidents were recorded in 2016 alone, although the actual number is likely to be “far greater” as the Home Office categorises many of the crimes as miscellaneous.

In 2016, there were 612 reports of incidents against badgers, 145 involving bats, 366 regarding marine mammals and 155 on birds of prey across England and Wales – 1,278 in total.

Dominic Dyer, the chief executive officer of the Badger Trust, said: “There is a correlation between the cull and wildlife crime in general. People feel that they can use the badger cull as a legitimate excuse to commit wildlife crimes and take the law into their own hands. There is growing concern that it is getting out of control.” He added: “They get in the way of property developers building houses and they would rather pay a fine for killing a few badgers with a bulldozer than it hold up their construction.”

The report, conducted by 18 wildlife organisations, was coordinated by Wildlife and Countryside Link (WCL) and Wales Environment Link.