Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research his Department has undertaken of the effect of the Badger Vaccination Deployment Project on the incidence of bovine TB in cattle.

The purpose of the Badger Vaccination Deployment Project is to learn lessons about the practicalities of deploying an injectable vaccine; provide training for others who may wish to apply for a licence to vaccinate badgers; and build farmer confidence in the use of badger vaccination. It was not designed as a scientific trial to assess the impact of vaccination on bovine TB in cattle and the scale of the project is insufficient to produce statistically reliable data on this.