Badger culling will continue in ‘hotspots’ of bovine TB
Targeted badger culling could continue in high-risk areas where it is needed to control tuberculosis in cattle under plans set out by the Government.
Intensive multi-year culls of badgers to curb bovine tuberculosis (bTB) – which can spread between the wild animals and cattle – in swathes of England are being phased out, with the existing policy due to end by January 2026.
In a new consultation about what comes next, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said targeted badger culling would remain an option where there is evidence to support its use.
This would be focused on “hotspots” within the existing highrisk and edge areas (buffer zones), which includes much of south-west and central England, where there are high levels of infection in cattle and evidence suggesting badgers are part of the local disease problem.
The targeted culling would continue until the disease situation has improved, based on an annual review by the UK’s chief veterinary officer, Defra said. Under the plans, badger vaccination would then be used to ensure disease reductions achieved by culling are maintained.
Defra said the Government’s strategy to control the disease had seen new bovine TB cases at a near 20-year low. The first 52 areas where badger culling was conducted show a reduction in rates of TB in herds on average by 56 per cent after four years of culls.
But culling has been controversial, with wildlife and animal welfare groups criticising the killing of tens of thousands of badgers – a protected species, and calling for focus on cattle controls and vaccination for livestock and badgers.
Defra said the new strategy built on its investment in wider-scale badger vaccination.
Environment Secretary Steve Barclay said: “There are no easy answers in the battle against TB, but badger culling has proved highly effective and needs to remain a key part of our approach.”