David
Drew MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for the Environment, Food and Rural affairs, commenting on
the Government’s release of badger cull statistics today, said:
“The
Government have released these high figures on the first day of Christmas
recess. Nearly 20,000 badgers have been culled this year, the highest number
ever, as part of an unsafe and unscientific badger cull.
“These
figures show that the Government failed to meet its targets and has adjusted
target numbers up and down for every single cull zone, raising serious
questions about the accuracy of current badger population estimates.
"In
the same month as announcing a Bill on animal welfare, this Government have
overseen a doubling in the number of badgers killed compared to last year. It’s
clear that despite their warm words, the Tories still have a serious problem
when it comes to animal welfare.
"Labour
calls on the Government to halt the badger cull across England and formally
review its policy on how to tackle bovine TB.”
Follow this news feed: Labour