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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their latest assessment of the effectiveness of the expansion of the badger cull across parts of England.

In 2017, licensed badger control operations were completed by local farmers and landowners in eleven new areas and eight existing areas. The Chief Veterinary Officer has stated that the outcome of 2017’s culls indicates that industry led culling can deliver the level of effectiveness required to be confident of achieving disease control benefits.

Results of the 2017 badger control operations can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-summary-of-badger-control-monitoring-during-2017

and:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-chief-veterinary-officers-advice-on-the-outcome-of-the-2017-badger-culls