‘Targeted’ Inquiry after badger sett disturbed
POLICE have launched an inquiry after a badger sett was disturbed in Gloucestershire. Rural crime teams at Gloucestershire Constabulary have been patrolling the county’s countryside to ensure badger setts are not interfered with.
Badgers and their homes are safeguarded by the Protection of Badgers Act 1992.
Rural police are in charge of monitoring any breaches of these laws and this weekend discovered one badger sett had been targeted.
They broke the news on Twitter in a post that read: “Checking on some of our badger setts, making sure there’s no persecution.
“Sadly one of the setts has been targeted. Police inquiries will begin.” No arrests have been made yet. Back in March, Gloucestershire Live reported badger culling would be phased out, replaced by vaccinations to combat tackle bovine tuberculosis.
Environment Secretary George Eustice said at the time: “Bovine TB is a slow-moving and insidious disease leading to the slaughter of over 30,000 cattle every year and considerable trauma for farmers as they suffer the loss of highly prized animals and valued herds.
“The badger cull has led to a significant reduction in the disease as demonstrated by recent academic research and past studies.
“But no one wants to continue the cull of this protected species indefinitely so, once the weight of disease in wildlife has been addressed, we will accelerate other elements of our strategy, including improved diagnostics and cattle vaccination to sustain the downward trajectory of the disease.”
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said trials of a vaccine would take place over the next five years.
Responding to the news that the badger cull in England will be phased out in favour of badger and cattle vaccination, Roger Mortlock, CEO of the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust (GWT) said: “GWT pioneered badger vaccination in the UK and was the first non-government organisation to prove it can work in a trial that ran between 2011 and 2015 across the county.
“Our report at the end of that trial concluded badger vaccination had been under-used in the fight against bovine TB and that we need to work with farmers on solutions that should include vaccinating badgers and cattle.
“Another five years on, and our position remains the same. There are no silver bullets in tackling this devastating disease, but badger vaccination is deliverable, cost-effective and avoids the unnecessary culling of a protected species.”