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Badgers and tuberculosis
The RSPB welcomes the Government's decision (7 July) to reject a cull of badgers in England. The announcement was made on 7 July by Hilary Benn MP, Secretary of State for the Environment Food and Rural Affairs as part of a package of measures to address the incidence of bovine tuberculosis in cattle. As a significant landowner, using cattle as a valuable component of our land management, the RSPB is sympathetic to concern within the farming community over bovine TB. However, the RSPB has major concerns that badger culling would:
For these reasons the RSPB is currently opposed to badger culling and will not voluntarily grant access for badger control on our land. The Independent Scientific Group on Bovine TB submitted its final report to Ministers on 18 June 2007. They concluded that 'badger culling can make no meaningful contribution to cattle TB control in Britain' and that 'the rising incidence of disease can be reversed, and geographical spread constrained, by the rigid application of cattle-based control measures alone.' Detailed studies on the effects of culling badgers show that killing over small areas will make the bTB problem worse, as animals move in search of safer ground or others from outside move in to fill the vacant territories, such movements lead to an increase in infection risk. The RSPB is currently opposed to badger culling and will not voluntarily grant access for badger control on our land. Killing badgers across a large area of countryside (e.g. 300 km2) might, in theory, lead to a reduction in disease. However, it would need to be carried out for many years, would be a huge undertaking and is likely to be highly impractical. It could only be done at great expense and in doing so would threaten the conservation status of the badger, which is a protected and popular part of our native wildlife. The RSPB believes that in ruling out a cull in England the Government has paid attention to the science, and is acting in the best interests of farmers, cattle and badgers. Renewed focus should now be applied to other measures to limit this disease. Increasing the effectiveness of the cattle testing regime and controlling the movement of infected animals will be key in reducing cattle to cattle tranmission. This will now be the task for the new Bovine TB Partnership Group announced by the Secretary of State. In addition, we recognise the importance of reducing the risk of cattle to badger or badger to cattle transmission. It is therefore important that up to date biosecurity advice on measures to reduce such contact (e.g. on the management of feed stores) is properly disseminated and fully implemented. In the medium term, the best option for eradicating bTB is the development of vaccines for badgers and cattle against this disease. We therefore welcome the commitment and additional resources that the Government have announced for vaccine development over the next three years. Whilst the situation in England has been clarified the possibility of a badger cull over the border in Wales remains. In April, Elin Jones AM, Rural Affairs Minister in Wales, announced a limited badger cull as part of an 'intensive treatment pilot area' to test the effectiveness of such a measure, although no location for this pilot has been agreed. The RSPB is opposed to this proposal for the reasons outlined above. Last modified: 07 August 2008 |
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Rape seed, close up - Andy Hay (rspb-images.com)
Three puffins standing on a rock - Steve Round
Ice glacier, Jökulsárlón, Iceland - (iStockPhoto, Ref: 1809179)
Bird illustrations by Mike Langman (RSPB)