Tens of thousands of badgers in England are threatened with slaughter due to a misguided attempt to control tuberculosis in cattle. Killing badgers as a means of controlling the spread of the disease has been overwhelmingly declared ineffective by a host of eminent scientific experts.
In addition, the current plans by the UK government to allow farmers and landowners to organize the free-shooting of these iconic mammals will not only result in many badgers suffering a slow painful death, but there is no guarantee that local populations won’t be wiped out, or at least severely disrupted.
HSI opposes the mass slaughter of badgers as a means of controlling bovine TB, and calls on the governments of both England and Wales to concentrate resources on reducing cattle-to-cattle spread and researching preventative methods to protect badgers and cattle. Join our campaign to protect badgers.
News
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March 19, 2013
Pilot Badger Killing Likely to Proceed This Summer
Environment Secretary Owen Paterson confirmed that authorisation had been issued by Natural England for the two pilot badger culls, in Somerset and in west Gloucestershire.
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October 29, 2012
For the Badgers' Sake, Let's Ensure This Stay of Execution Becomes a Permanent End to the Cull
Now that the government has announced a postponement of the badger cull and Members of Parliament have debated and voted overwhelmingly against the cull taking place, HSI/UK has pledged to work to ensure that this stay of execution becomes a permanent end to the cull.
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October 23, 2012
England’s Badgers Safe for Now, But We Must Kill the Cull for Good
As environment secretary Owen Paterson announced a postponement of the government's badger cull plans until next year, Mark Jones, HSI's executive director, pledged to continue to work until culling plans are ended for good.
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October 14, 2012
Badger Cull: Cruelty in the Killing Fields
A group of veterinarians, including HSI UK’s Executive Director Mark Jones, has written an open letter Owen Paterson, Secretary of State at the UK’s Department of Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, to express their concern that the slaughter of badgers will result in widespread animal suffering.