RSPCA calls on Defra to follow Wales and scrap badger cull plans
News from Wales shows badger vaccination on track
RSPCA welcomes news of progress of the badger vaccination programme in Wales and calls on the English Government to follow suit.
In a statement in the Welsh Assembly this week (29 January), John Griffiths AM, the Minister for Environment and Sustainable Development, announced that 1,424 badgers had been vaccinated in one area.
Whilst welcoming this positive move, the RSPCA also recognises that there are other parts of the country facing the challenge of bovine TB and could benefit from the government’s vaccination programme.
David Bowles, head of external affairs for the RSPCA, said: “The news from Wales could not be clearer – it clearly shows the way forward in dealing with the problems of bovine TB in cattle is through a vaccination programme.
“We would like to congratulate the Welsh Minister on the way he is tacking this problem, and call on Defra to follow their example.
“We fully sympathise with the farming community as it faces these issues. A full vaccination programme, along with other measures, could ensure that this dreadful disease is greatly reduced.”
Ends
Notes to editors
The five-year badger vaccination programme is taking place over 288 sq km in the intensive action area in Pembrokeshire in Wales
The English Government, using the same scientific data as the Welsh assembly, are planning a pilot badger cull in the summer.
The RSPCA has for years campaigned against plans for a widespread badger cull for both scientific and welfare reasons. We believe a cull would be of little help in eradicating bovine TB in cattle, and could even make it worse in some areas.
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Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals registered charity no: 219099 Registered office: RSPCA, Wilberforce Way, Southwater, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 9RS
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