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Wildlife Reservoirs, is the badger a costly distraction, a scapegoat ...?



 Added by  Thomas (Guest)
 22 Jul 2010, 6:43 PM


Prof John Bourne, who conducted the infamous ten year, government-funded study which showed that badger killing is a waste of time and money, recalled what he was told by a senior politician:
 
"Fine, John, we accept your science, but we have to offer farmers a carrot. And the only carrot we can possibly give them is culling badgers."
 
This strand on the forum deals mainly with the wildlife reservoirs involved in the bovine TB saga. In the UK this is, as we are probably all aware by now, believed to be mainly the badger. No other mammal has been studied in the UK as intensely as the badger so actually we don't really know just how other animals are implicated. In other countries different species are implicated. There are some anomalies too, including the example below.
 
Has anyone an explanation for the following!
 
According to last issue of Gwlad, Australia is now bTB free after 27 years of trying. We are told it has no wildlife reservoir. New Zealand is still aiming for eradication. It has a wildlife reservoir - possums - which are considered a pest species as not indigenous so are being culled - and vaccinated!
 
HOWEVER - possums ARE native to Australia and bTB was rife in country for years so - why are the Australian possums not a reservoir?

becky
Dominic Dyer is a passionate and knowledgeable advocate against the badger cull. He spoke eloquently at the Communities Against the Cull March in Manchester supported by the TUC. He said 'the sun was out and over 50,000 people attended the marcH the biggest in living memory in Manchester. I think almost thousand were badger cull protesters from across the country which at 10 days notice was fantastic'. A video of his speech is on You Tube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWQc-VNKC8w&feature=youtu.be.
 
In an article in the Western Daily Press (http://www.westerndailypress.co.uk/Dominic-Dyer-Badger-cull-founded-negligence/story-19830115-detail/story.html) Dominic Dyer says the Badger cull is founded on negligence, deceit and incompetence.
 
'Having worked in agriculture and food policy for most of my career, I in no way underestimate the pain and hardship TB causes to farmers and their families and the urgent need to reduce its impact.'
 
'However, this cannot hide the fact that the badger cull has no credible scientific justification and is simply a political decision to appease farming interests, despite huge opposition from most leading scientists, conservationists and the public.'
 
'It is the worst farm and environment policy we have seen in 40 years and will collapse as it is built on three pillars of sand: negligence, incompetence and deceit.'
 
'Negligence, because in 2001 during the foot-and-mouth outbreak, NFU president Ben Gill pressurised Prime Minister Tony Blair to give up plans to vaccinate cattle to stop the spread of the disease in favour of a cull policy. Once this had been completed, NFU pushed for a speedy restocking from TB hot-spot areas, with no TB testing systems in place. This resulted in a trebling of the spread of bovine TB within 18 months and remains a key factor in the high level of TB in cattle and badgers today.'
 
'Negligence, because Defra and the NFU have failed to get on top of the spread of bovine TB by taking the necessary steps to improve biosecurity, tighten cattle movement controls and improve TB testing. Most farmers are unwilling to spend money on new fencing and securing cattle pens and food stores to prevent interaction between badgers and cattle, although we know this is a key factor in the spread of bovine TB. To make matters worse, there have been more than 78 million cattle movements in the UK in the past six years, but only 11 prosecutions for TB-related fraud, which is a green light to those who wish to break the law by changing ear tags or altering cattle passports.'
 
'Incompetence, because the free shooting of badgers at night will undoubtedly result in huge suffering and large numbers of animals being wounded and moving between setts, increasing the risk of spreading bovine TB, the exact opposite of the what the cull is seeking to achieve. We have already seen this in recent weeks as more dead badgers are found on the edge of the cull zones.'
 
'Deceit, because although we are told bovine TB is a crisis for the farming industry, the public were not aware until the recent Sunday Times front-page story, that more than 30,000 cattle slaughtered for TB infection every year go directly into the food chain with no labelling or traceability, a trade which generates upwards of £10 million per year for Defra to offset against its TB cattle slaughter scheme.'
 
'Deceit, because since January, tighter cattle control and TB testing systems forced on the UK Government by the European Commission have resulted in a steady decline in the rate of bovine TB compared to 2012, yet Defra and NFU make no mention of these reductions and continue to paint a very bleak picture to justify the cull policy.'
 
'Deceit, because the Government has no plans to test any of the 5,300 badgers to be shot over the six-week trial. This is despite the fact that the NFU and wildlife conservation groups called for tests to be undertaken, including the use of DNA technology to provide a clearer picture of the various strains of TB in badgers and how this affects the transmission of TB to cattle.'
 
'Deceit, because the Government has refused to accept the recommendation of the Information Commissioner to release guidelines on the humaneness criteria being used to monitor the cull, despite the Chief Veterinary Officer admitting that Defra has no strict rules for humaneness or its assessment.'
 
'As we approach the end of the trial, it is now becoming clear that free shooting is turning into a disaster. Defra refuses to confirm numbers killed but based on good sources, we believe it is likely to be less that 300 from a target of 5,300. This could make this badger cull one of the most expensive wildlife culling projects in history, with each badger shot coming in with a price tag of around £10,000.'
 
'Farmers have worked hard to earn the respect of the public as stewards and protectors of the countryside and its wildlife. This reputation is now being torn apart by this highly unpopular cull policy which is now on the verge of collapse. The Government would have been wise to have listened to the advice of leading scientists such as Lord Krebbs, Sir John Beddington and Sir Bob Watson about the dangers of pursing a policy for political rather than science-based reasons.'
 
becky
A new website (www.badgerfriendlyfarms.info/) has been launched which is run by farmers for farmers who do not believe that badger culling is the way forward but who, instead want to see cattle vaccination introduced. .
 
Efforts have been concentrated on those farms who deal directly with the public - ie farm shops, farm gate sales, farmers markets, online farm produce. These are the ones that can only profit from declaring themselves Badger Friendly.
 
Farms that do not support the culling of wildlife are encouraged to use the Badger Friendly labels which can be downloaded from www.badgerfriendlyfarms.info/downloads.html
 
There has already been a steady stream of Tweets and feedback in support of the site confirming that there is a strong demand from people who would prefer to buy Badger Friendly goods rather than boycott those that aren't.
 
becky
Copy of letter printed in Shrophsire Star on Sept 30 2013. Published here with permission of the authors.
 
Dear Editor,
We have farmed cattle in Gloucestershire since the 80's so we have taken a keen interest in the subject of bovine TB for a very long time.
An article in the Shropshire Star headlined 'Cases of bovine TB in Shropshire are up by 4,000 per cent ' contains unqualified statements about bovine TB statistics :
http://www.shropshirestar.com/news/environment/2013/09/14/cases-of-bovine-tb%E2%80%88in-shropshire-are-up-by-4000-per-cent/
Firstly, we would point out that the number of cattle slaughtered always needs to be expressed as a percentage of the total number cattle tested for each of the years referenced in order to make an accurate comparison unless the intention is to make statements which are alarmist and misleading.
 
Secondly, it is essential to refer to the fact that the incidence of bovine TB rose dramatically in 2002 due to the restocking of cattle after the Foot and Mouth outbreak when there was insufficient cattle TB testing in place - see Table 2 in the latest gov statistics file, page 6, with explanatory note re impact of FMD
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/238953/bovinetb-statsnotice-11sep13.pdf .
 
It is therefore disingenuous and inaccurate to compare bTB figures from today with any figures prior to 2003.
 
We can see from Table 1, page 5, of the same document that, once proper cattle testing was again established, the incidence of bTB levelled and has remained relatively stable since 2003. In fact, you can see there is now a downward trend of bTB incidence reflecting the tighter cattle movement regulations introduced in January of this year.
We hope you will consider publishing this letter in your newspaper to give your readers a balanced and informed picture of the situation.
Yours sincerely,
D G & G E Purser
 
becky
"We'd stop the culls"-- says Labour (BT Press Release today).
 
The Badger Trust has warmly welcomed the news that a Labour government would scrap the Coalition’s plans for a series of badger culls that could see well over 100,000 badgers slaughtered by licensed “marksmen”.
 
Shadow Defra Secretary Mary Creagh told Labour conference delegates that if her party won power it would not be rolling out what she described as the “disastrous badger culls”, and in an interview with the Western Morning News she explained:
 
"There will be no roll-out because we do not think it is the right thing to do. We know it spreads bovine TB in the short-term. So it costs farmers more than it would save them”.
 
Addressing a conference fringe meeting Shadow Farm Minister Huw Irranca-Davies acknowledged that the disease needed to be dealt with in badgers as well as in cattle, but that was best done by developing an oral badger vaccine. “We would push forward with developing oral vaccines which are the best way forward—as well as injectable vaccines—to deal with those hotspot areas in a holistic manner”.
 
A decision on whether to continue with the pilot trials already underway would be made in the light of the best scientific evidence available.
 
Badger Trust chairman David Williams commented: “We have opposed these futile culls every inch of the way so we very much welcome Labour’s announcement which is in tune with the independent scientific community’s condemnation of what is widely seen as a crude, abhorrent slaughter with at best only marginal benefits over nine years.
 
“The Coalition pretends that the pilot culls will demonstrate that night shooting of badgers is safe, efficient and humane, but its determination not to allow the public to see its specially commissioned report on the humaneness of night shooting of badgers confirms that it has a great deal to hide. Its secrecy is shameful and very worrying”.
 
becky
Fears of bovine tuberculosis is prompting more cattle across Greater Manchester and beyond in the North West to be quarantined following an increase in the number of northern herds under disease restrictions as revealed in the statistics released from the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) earlier this month. However, the badger IS NOT being blamed.
 
Since 2008, Greater Manchester herd numbers affected by the disease have remained low, typically alternating between zero and one. However, from May 2012 this figure has risen to seven herds placed under restriction. An AHVLA spokesperson has said that Greater Manchester remains a low incidence area for bovine TB, with only three cattle herds of approximately 350 deemed Officially TB Free Withdrawn (OTFW) by the agency in the last six months. All of these cases came as a result of inadvertent infection from cattle brought in from high risk areas, despite annual testing and movement restrictions - which clearly do not work.
 
“There is no evidence of bovine TB infection in wildlife in the Greater Manchester area,” the spokesperson said.
 
Lancashire and Cheshire herds affected have risen from five to 23 restricted herds in Lancashire and from 80 to 155 in Cheshire. Apparently Lancashire was a bTB hotspot 70 years ago, towards the end of the Second World War, and the disease was eradicated then without killing any badgers.
 
 
 
Info from:
http://mancunianmatters.co.uk/content/260912634-revealed-explosion-cattle-herds-quarantined-over-bovine-tb-greater-manchester-ba...

 
becky
Police accused of bias over culling of badgers reports the Guardian (http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/24/police-accused-bias-culling-badgers).
 
Officer 'threatened to pass protester data to farmers' while civil rights lawyers call tactic 'highly questionable'
 
Officers policing the controversial badger culls in England have been accused of "highly questionable" actions by civil liberties lawyers, after they told protesters their personal details would be passed to the National Farmers' Union and handed out NFU-produced leaflets about the union's civil injunction.
 
Gwendolen Morgan, a solicitor at Bindmans, said: "The police's actions here appear highly questionable. The passing of personal information to a private body, without any apparent legal basis, is a serious concern. Since when did the police become the enforcers of the NFU's civil injunction?"
 
In a video filmed last Thursday in Gloucestershire passed to the Guardian, a police officer tells a protester: "Because you have obviously been in the vehicle whilst the alleged offences happened. OK, your details will be passed to the National Farmers' Union, and it is possible you may now be subject to the civil injunction they have taken out … but that will be up to the National Farmers' Union as to whether they wish to put that through court."
 
The protester told the Guardian: "The police say they are being independent but this looks like they are acting as a private security firm for the NFU." He was not arrested and those arrested on that night have now been released without charge.
 
Officers have also been giving protesters NFU-produced leaflets that state a breach of the civil injunction may lead to "summary arrest without warrant" and that "you are hereby put on notice of the injunction". In an earlier incident recorded on 6 September, an officer is asked why some protesters are being detained. He replied: "The NFU are coming down to give them an official warning because they committed aggravated trespass."
 
Morgan said: "There are major civil liberties issues at play. If the police are exercising their powers to satisfy a private interest group, that would be very improper and very concerning to the majority of peaceful citizens concerned about the cull. It seems like the police are going beyond their powers and doing more than is permitted."
 
A spokesman for Gloucestershire police said: "The officer in this case should have stressed that we can pass information onto the NFU, rather than will. As the high court issued the injunction and the NFU would not be able to enforce it without details of possible breaches, we believe in certain circumstances there is a pressing social need to disclose information." The police also said their communication had been "unclear" regarding the 6 September incident and said the NFU have no power to issue official warnings.
 
Regarding the distribution of NFU legal leaflets, the spokesman said: "To help those who do wish to protest we feel it is important they are aware of the injunction so that they can ensure any action they do take is legal. Therefore protestors have been issued with an explanation of the injunction."
 
The NFU's relationship with the government is also causing controversy, after the department for environment, food and rural affairs (Defra) refused to disclose information on the cull on the grounds that communications with the NFU constituted "internal communications". The Information Commissioner has ruled against Defra's refusal, but the department is appealing the decision and on Thursday, Morgan, who acts for the Badger Trust, filed new legal documents challenging Defra's appeal.
 
"If Defra were to succeed in their use of the 'internal communications' exemption, this would be a very worrying development for democratic decision-making," said Morgan, adding that it would set a precedent of secrecy for any lobbyists' communication with government. "The Badger Trust is going above and beyond the call of duty and taking on the wider case on behalf of all those organisations who campaign for transparency in decision-making."
 
becky
Labour has pledged to halt the expansion of badger culling if the party wins the general election.
 
The party, which refused to sanction killing of badgers to curb the spread of bovine tuberculosis when in power, has made its most explicit statement to date on the controversial measure during Labour conference in Brighton yesterday.
 
Labour's Shadow Environment Secretary also told the Western Morning News she believed two pilot badger culls in the South West would be pulled if – as sources have indicated to the WMN – the shooting is proved ineffective.
 
Mrs Creagh told delegates in the main conference hall: "A 'One Nation' Labour government won't be rolling out the disastrous badger cull."
 
Info from: www.thisiscornwall.co.uk/ll-stop-badger-cull-Labour-tells-conference/story-19831724-detail/story.html#axzz2fij9zNns
 
becky
Badgers could be vaccinated on farms in six more areas of Wales according to the report today in Farmers Weekly (http://www.fwi.co.uk/articles/23/09/2013/141194/badger-vaccine-option-extended-in-welsh-tb-fight.htm)
 
The Welsh Assembly government is launching an initiative called Cymorth TB - which translates as Support TB - to provide practical support and advice to cattle keepers in Wales. Private vets will be encouraged to suggest which elements of veterinary and farm management advice they believe is most appropriate for their farming clients.
 
Options will include providing advice on biosecurity, farm management and cattle trading strategy - as well as badger vaccination.
 
The first part of Cymorth TB is a pilot project across six areas, which will test an enhanced disease management role for private veterinarians.
 
The project would see the "dream combination" of an epidemiologist, government veterinary officer and local private vets working together focusing on individual disease clusters.
 
If vets proposed badger vaccination, then the recommendation would be carefully considered, Dr Glossop added.
 
The pilot will run from autumn 2013 until late spring 2014, after which a decision over a wider future roll-out of the programme to the rest of Wales will be taken.
 
Badgers are already being vaccinated in North Pembrokeshire as part of a five-year programme to combat bovine TB. This area will also be part of the Cymorth TB project area.
 
The five additional Cymorth TB project areas are in Anglesey, East Carmarthenshire, East Monmouthshire, Gower, and an area around Wrexham.
 
Veterinary training events and workshops have taken place throughout the summer in advance of the pilot project starting this autunm.
 
becky
Email from GK 20/9/13:
 
A little clarification may be helpful. This information comes from Hampshire County Council to whom I spoke this afternoon.
The ban only covers land owned by the County Council.
 
It does not cover land owned by the various district councils which cover the Hampshire county area.
 
These local district councils are Basingstoke and Deane, East Hampshire, Eastleigh, Fareham, Gosport, Hart, Havant, New Forest, Rushmoor, Test Valley and Winchester.
 
Each of these Councils owns land within their areas and the County Council ban does not cover any land which they own.
 
For culling to be banned in land owned by these councils each council would have to agree its own motion.
 
Southampton may have a Hampshire postal address but it is also outside Hampshire County Council's remit.
 
The vote was passed "overwhelmingly" but unless a councillor asks for each councillors vote to be individually recorded no records are taken of votes cast. Sadly, in this case, no councillor made such a request so we can't make any party political analysis !
 
This typifies the "patchwork" nature of English local government; the same situation will apply in many county areas.

 
becky
'LEAVE our badgers alone.' That was the message from Hampshire councillors who overwhelmingly backed a motion this week to ban badger culling on county-owned land. A somewhat surprising result if one looks at the political make up of the council - see below. Is this showing an evaporation of support amongst grass roots Tories and Lib Dems for this Government policy?
 
Political composition of the County Council
· Conservatives - 46
· Liberal Democrats - 16
· UKIP - 10
· Labour - 4
· Community Campaign (Hart) - 1
· Independent - 1
 
 
Lib Dem Cllr Rupert Kyrle put forward the motion at the full council meeting in Winchester on Thursday (Sept 19).
 
His motion argued that culling was not a scientifically proven solution to the TB problem."
 
http://www.thisishampshire.net/news/hampshirechroniclenews/10688398.Badger_culling_banned_by_Hampshire_County_Council
 
becky
Email from P 20/9/13:
 
Superb article by George Monbiot
 
Do the police act at the behest of the UK's rich and powerful?
 
An encounter with badger protesters highlights a deference to power that is part of a pattern pre-dating formal police forces
 
 
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/georgemonbiot/2013/sep/19/police-uk-powerful
 
becky
'A restatement of the natural science evidence base relevant to the control of bovine tuberculosis in Great Britain'
 
Abstract
 
Bovine tuberculosis (bTB) is a very important disease of cattle in Great Britain, where it has been increasing in incidence and geographical distribution. In addition to cattle, it infects other species of domestic and wild animals, in particular the European badger (Meles meles). Policy to control bTB is vigorously debated and contentious because of its implications for the livestock industry and because some policy options involve culling badgers, the most important wildlife reservoir. This paper describes a project to provide a succinct summary of the natural science evidence base relevant to the control of bTB, couched in terms that are as policy-neutral as possible. Each evidence statement is placed into one of four categories describing the nature of the underlying information. The evidence summary forms the appendix to this paper and an annotated bibliography is provided in the electronic supplementary material.
 
becky
Email from MR 20/9/13: t
 
The existence of a correlation between badger and cattle infection levels, and the observation that culling badgers can both increase and decrease cattle infection does not prove or indicate a cause, but it does give room for further questioning and investigation (particularly of the biological mechanism involved).
 
The claim that 50% of cattle infection is caused by badgers is based on statistics only, and the originator of the claim describes it as an uncertain estimate (see posting below).
 
Jamie McMillan in his planetrant piece has attempted to demolish that statistical work. How sound is his argument and why? Likewise Mike Rendle has proposed that the main direction is cattle to badger not badger to cattle from the NI road kill data. Atkins and Robinson have come to a similar conclusion with different data over a much longer time frame. It would be interesting to see your critique of these three propositions all of which are incompatible with 50%.
 
On the other hand if the 50% figure is anywhere near reality, how on earth are the badgers doing it? We need to know. A solution may then be obvious.

 
becky
Email from P 19/9/13:
 
I raised the point with Christl Donnelly on Twitter the other day that there were changes to cattle movement regs & testing regimes during the period spanned by the RBCT trials so reduction in bTB in the cull areas cannot be attributed solely to reduction in badgers, even when compared to the 'control' areas. All manner of other condtions need to be assessed to give true picture.
 
Christl Donnelly confirming on Twitter that the 50% claim is an estimate to which she adds 'albeit an uncertain one'.
 
becky
Email comment from M 19/9/13:
 
One of the things I look for is “converging evidence”. In other words, as we find out more about a problem and the quality of the available evidence improves, it should start to agree or at least converge towards agreement.
 
I don’t see this happening with the bovine TB issue, just the opposite. Much of the evidence presented is ambiguous, contradictory or paradoxical. For example: The role of the NZ possum figures heavily in the badger hypotheses here, as does the significance of indirect transmission. Yet the NZ research effectively dismissed indirect transmission as a vector route.
 
If anything, emerging evidence fails spectacularly to support badger to cattle transmission, merely a close correlation in infection in both species. Why is this so if the ‘badger case’ is so cut and dried?
 
becky
Email from MR 18/9/13:
 
Further to Planetrant article mentioned in the previous posting, it is important in any field (and no less in biology and farming) to stand back and ask if a prediction or result is reasonable.
 
How reasonable is it that a population of 300,000 small animals of say 10Kg body mass each, having limited contact with cattle, can be just as effective at spreading BTB to cattle as the cattle themselves who number some 10,000,000 of say 500kg body mass each and live in very close contact with one another? It is a mere hypothesis, and on the work done so far an extremely unlikely one.
 
If anyone advocates 50% they should get down to work without delay and find out how it is so. Meanwhile I for one will tend to prefer (while keeping an open mind) the more credible findings of many scientists that while a numerical correlation exists between cattle and badger infection, we do not know in which direction(s) cattle and badgers infect one another (outside a laboratory) or whether the correlation is just due to a common risk factor.

 
becky
In recent months the oft quoted figure of '50% bovine TB is due to badgers' has been bandied around by those pushing badger culling. However, this is a spurious figure as a recent interesting article reveals at: http://planetrant.wordpress.com/2013/09/13/fifty-percent-of-tb-due-to-badgers-a-spurious-statistic-and-how-it-was-created
 
This 50% figure has appeared in the House of Commons debates on the subject, both in main debates and in committees, as well as in various DEFRA publications. As a simply-understood and memorable figure amongst a welter of quite complex statistics, it now forms one of the main planks in the pro-cull argument. The fact that it was produced by an eminent statistician goes to strengthen it further.
 
However, apparently the 'figure is based on fundamentally mis-applied statistics , and has arisen from a process of ‘sexing-up’ figures derived from a very thin set of data..'
 
The article clearly outlines how it was arrived at, why it can be regarded as spurious, and how the statistics surrounding it have been ‘sexed-up’.
 
becky
Exposed: more pilot cull deceit says BAdger Trust in its latest press release today:
 
Bit by bit, day by day the badger pilot culls are being exposed for what they are, a sham-- an exercise in secrecy, deceit, and incompetence, says the Badger Trust.
 
Trumpeted by Defra and Secretary of State Owen Paterson as an objective science-driven assessment of the safety, efficacy and humaneness of night shooting they have now been shown in their true light, a costly shambles, a politically driven charade in which the ultimate decisions on their humaneness and effectiveness will be made not objectively by independent experts but subjectively by ministers.
 
The latest revelation comes in an admission (1) from the Government Chief Vet Nigel Gibbens, that DEFRA has no hard and fast rules on what constitutes a humane kill or on how they will decide if the cull has been a success on humaneness grounds. He said this meant the final decision had to be taken by ministers rather than the independent panel of vets and scientists advising them.
 
Says Badger Trust chairman Dave Williams: “This is scandalous. It’s akin to an accused man in court being judge and jury. For the public to have any faith in the outcome of these widely condemned trials the verdict has to be dispassionate, objective and expert.
 
“Owen Paterson fails on all three counts. He has driven the campaign to slaughter over 100,000 badgers. He claims to care about badgers but admits he would like to see their legal protection removed. He has ignored the overwhelming opposition of independent scientific opinion.
 
“He promised robust monitoring of the pilot culls. But we learn that the six-week trials will be overseen by only a handful of monitors and that only a tiny number of carcasses will be examined by experts to assess slaughter efficiency and humaneness. It also seems apparent that the number of badgers so far killed falls far short of the licence targets.
 
“This is an ill conceived, cruel and futile DIY culling campaign that exposes farmers to public hostility and which even if successful would barely dent the bovine TB problem. The e-petition opposing it reached a record-breaking 303,000, and the growing support in parliament for the early day motion calling on the Government to have a further debate in Westminster once the pilot culls are completed --and before any decisions are taken on a national cull policy—is a clear sign that more and more MPs, forced by whips to toe the line in the last debate, are increasingly critical of this unpopular policy.
 
“Along with hundreds of thousands of conservationists and people who care about wildlife Badger Trust says it’s time to call off the culls, back vaccination, and to rigorously enforce the new cattle-based measures.”
 
(1) The Times, online, September 17
 
becky
From an article in the Times emailed to us on 16/09/13 by AB:
 
Ministers will use a “subjective judgment” of the humaneness of shooting badgers to help them decide whether to extend the cull to up to 40 more areas, the Government’s chief vet said.
 
Nigel Gibbens revealed that there were “no definitive criteria for determining humaneness” of shooting badgers. He said this meant the final decision had to be taken by ministers rather than the independent panel of vets and scientists advising them.
 
Campaigners against the cull said the revelation that humaneness would be determined partly by personal opinion rather than purely on objective evidence cast more doubt on the scientific justification for killing badgers to reduce bovine TB.
 
becky
Email dated 16/9/13 received from P.
 
The following Guardian report also contains a decription and video made by the reporter himself detailing the way the police (Somerset on occasion) are effectively responding as security guards for the NFU's cull companies.
 
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/sep/12/secrecy-badger-cull-anti-democratic (8:27secs into the video for section on police).
 
We've complained to the Police & Crime Commissioners for Glos & Somerset as their role should be one of overseeing police behaviour.
 
https://www.gov.uk/police-and-crime-commissioners " PCCs are elected to make sure that local police meet the needs of the community ".
 
becky
The Guardian (www.theguardian.com/environment/2013/sep/16/badger-cull-shot-animal-picture) has run a story, 'Badger cull: first photo of shot animal emerges'. The badger concerned is believed to have been shot by marksmen. It apparently 'had time to take flight', thereby putting in doubt claims of humane, instant killing of these animals.
 
A single high velocity bullet killed the animal, passing right through it, the vet who examined the carcass told the Guardian. Most badgers she had seen shot before the cull had been peppered with gunshot, Dr Elizabeth Mullineaux said.
 
Defra denied that the animal had been killed as part of the cull because all the badgers killed so far had died 'instantly.' "All badgers killed as part of the pilot culls have been shot cleanly and killed instantly," a tweet by the department said. One does wonder how they can be so convinced of this though as there is so little monitoring of both trial culls?
 
Mullineaux, who has been a clinical vet for 17 years, said: "A single shot has entered left-hand side of the chest, slightly behind the Defra target area. Rather than going through perpendicular therefore to the heart and lungs, it went diagonally and out the side."
 
X-rays of the animal showed fragments of the bullet, and what appeared to be "one track" between one entry and one exit point. She was of the opinion just one bullet had been used, leaving the stomach and liver lobe coming out of the "sizeable" exit hole.
 
She said it was hard to say how long the animal was alive for after being shot, apart from the fact it had time to take flight. One of the key tests of the humaneness of the pilot culls, which are designed to see if badgers can be killed in a way that is safe, humane and effective to combat the spread of bovine TB to cattle, is 'time to death', Freedom of Information requests have revealed.
 
becky
One would like to believe that the MPs that are responsible for the existing policy are fair, sane and intelligent people who really do try to do their best whilst they are in office and bother to properly research a subject ... sadly this is not always the case ...
 
'Outspoken" (www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Dead-badger-dumped-MP-s-doorstep/story-19770222-detail/story.html) Ian Liddell-Grainger, the Conservative MP for Bridgwater, without any evidence to back up his accusations, immediately blamed those against the badger cull for depositing, in the early hours of the morning, a dead badger on his doorstep recently. He then went into more detail, and launched a stinging attack on cull protesters, in his column in the WMN's sister title, the Western Daily Press, including the comment (about those who are anti cull) "... since they are all malingerers and scroungers there is no real incentive to leap out of bed as soon as the dawn chorus strikes up."
 
What arrogance and he should really make an effort to get involved with those against the cull. As someone who has been involved with all sectors embroiled in this policy for many years, including those who are anti-culling, I can tell him that I have come across none that are malingerers and scroungers and, in fact, are from all walks of life including many professional people who care passionately about the countryside, wildlife and justice. Perhaps he should join one of the 'badger patrols' or 'camps' - and meet some of the people he is calling 'malingerers and scroungers' with 'no real incentive to leap out of bed as soon as the dawn chorus strikes' and see how wrong he is. These people are prepared to stay up most of the night to look out for wounded badgers or to peacefully protest against a policy that an increasing number of people now believe is very wrong.

 
becky
As the badger culling proceeds in Somerset and Glos several people have drawn our attention to the audio video at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=iP6lRX4k8-0&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DiP6lRX4k8-0&app=desktop and are asking if the police are now working for the NFU? Listening to it, it is, indeed, a disturbing bit of reporting ...
 
becky
MP David Heath rapped over badger cull 'censorship' (www.thisissomerset.co.uk/MP-David-Heath-rapped-badger-cull-censorship/story-19785631-detail/story.html#axzz2ehcm1IFI)
 
AN animal protection society has criticised the MP for Somerton and Frome over the badger cull in Somerset. David Heath, who is also minister of state for DEFRA, came under fire over the release of a report assessing how humane the cull is. The Humane Society International has asked to see a DEFRA document that assessed badger suffering. But the society claims that DEFRA refused to supply it for nearly eight months and, when it did, the majority of the 28-page document was blacked out.
 
It also claimed that Mr Heath misled a fellow MP who asked why the document had been censored. Mr Heath told Adrian Sanders MP that releasing the details could adversely affect public safety or damage the environment. He said non-disclosure of information was allowed under Environmental Information Regulations.
 
However, Gerrard Tracey, of the Information Commissioners Office, ruled on August 6 that Mr Heath's explanation was not valid. He said that the regulations did not allow for this information to be withheld.
 
A statement from the society said Mr Heath had "misrepresented information" as he "should have been fully aware of this at the time of his response".
 
Mr Tracey has ordered DEFRA to provide the information withheld in the document to be released to the society.
 
A Defra spokesperson said: “We have been granted an extension and are considering whether to appeal the Information Commissioner’s decision.
"The humaneness evaluation criteria, as agreed with the independent panel of experts, will be published along with a full account and assessment of the pilot culls once they have concluded.”
 
becky
Badger culls could be extended if marksmen fail to kill enough animals in the planned six-week period, under a Government contingency plan to ensure the trials are completed.
 
The possibility of prolonging the culls emerged as reports claimed that the one in Somerset had fallen behind schedule, with fewer than 100 badgers killed in the first ten days. Any extension would add to the £4 million estimated bill for policing the two culls.
 
Derek Mead, a farmer from Westonsuper-Mare, wrote in theWestern Morning News that he had been told that by the middle of the second week of the Somerset cull fewer than 100 badgers had been killed. The same newspaper quoted a source saying: “They are having major problems. Only three or four badgers are being shot every day. It is just a case now of who gets the blame.”
If the figures are correct, the pilot culls could fail the “effectiveness” test set by the Department for Environment, Food, Agriculture and Rural Affairs (Defra).
Companies set up to conduct the culls have been set a target of killing 70 per cent of badgers inside culling zones within six weeks. Cutting the population quickly is thought to be essential to minimise the risk of diseased animals leaving the area.
 
Defra is understood to have accepted that the licences might need to be extended if circumstances, such as interference by animal rights protesters, prevent marksmen from reaching the required target within six weeks.
 
Extending the cull would mean marksmen were more likely to contend with adverse weather, but Defra believes that an extension could be preferable to failing to meet the target.
 
Info from: www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/environment/wildlife/article3867586.ece?CMP=OTH-gnws-standard-2013_09_12
 

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