The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) has responded to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affair’s (Defra) new bovine tuberculosis (bTB) strategy review.
The RSPCA acknowledged that the review states Defra will be working to find non-lethal disease control, with an aim to end badger culling by 2029.
However, the RSPCA are stating that this is not enough, and that the government must move to bring a permanent end to the badger cull.
In response to the review, RSPCA’s assistant director of policy, Gemma Hope said: “We are extremely disappointed at the absence of any mention of animal welfare or ethical consideration, which should be central to effective bTB policy.”
Badger culling
Hope highlighted that over 247,000 badgers were culled under licence by the end of 2024.
She stated: “We remain deeply concerned about the welfare implications of badger cull policy.”
“Ethical wildlife management principles deem changing human behaviour should be the first option and lethal methods a last resort. This needs to be at the heart of policy.
The RSPCA representative noted that the main culling method is controlled shooting of badgers from a distance at night.
Hope labelled this as “cruel and inhumane”, stating that it can take a while for badgers to succumb to bullet wounds, often dying from blood loss or organ failure.
She explained that in the fight against bTB, badgers have been subject to culling since the 1970s, adding that the policy remains “ineffective”.
Hope said: “This report acknowledges bTB is primarily spread between cattle, so the primary focus should be on cattle measures, not wildlife management, to effectively tackle the spread of bTB.”
bTB control
Hope stated that the policy review should put a larger focus on tackling the spread of bTB through effective cattle measures.
Hope stated: “The focus of bTB policy should be on cattle measures to effectively tackle the spread of the disease.
“We would like to see biosecurity measures made mandatory, according to local levels of bTB risk.
“The reviews acknowledge poor uptake of cattle measures such as on-farm biosecurity improvements and the rise in risk when trading increases cattle mobility.”
Hope added that substantial improvements are needed to achieve the target of a bTB-free status across England by 2038.
The RSPCA representative also acknowledged how the disease devastates farming communities, taking a significant financial and emotional toll.
She added that farmers should take ownership of eradication measures, but urged the government to support them with advice and effective solutions, while keeping animal welfare at heart.
