Gary's views

BADGERS

Badgers are noble and attractive creatures, made popular by the enchanting story of the Wind in the Willows, but I strongly support a cull of their numbers in designated areas of the country, especially Devon.

The science now demonstrates that badgers are almost certainly responsible for infecting herds of dairy cattle with bovine tuberculosis. This is the nasty disease that we had virtually eradicated from the UK, but in the last decade we have seen it creep back in. Cases of TB have increased in this region by 18% between 2006 and 2007. I met with a group of local dairy farmers recently and their fear of this killer disease affecting their farms was palpable.

Every few months dairy cows are tested to see whether any in their midst have contracted TB and if there is even one reactor, the whole herd is slaughtered. I remember these occasions from my own childhood and they are full of stress for farmers and cattle alike.

It is easy to recognise the financial devastation this causes to the farmer concerned, but what is less commonly considered is the emotional impact of seeing your life’s work wiped out in a single day. The financial compensation never takes this into account and just imagine how hard it must be to get going again.

TB is an unpleasant experience for badgers as well, infected animals taking a long time to die in pain in the wild. My father, a retired dairy farmer, always puts a simple point to me. Why do the animal rights people think it is OK for cows to be slaughtered, but badgers cannot be touched? If they looked like rats, he says, nobody would bat an eyelid.

Their numbers have grown exponentially in recent years and the rise in over-crowded sets might be why TB is on the march.

After many difficult years, the next decade could be a better time for British farmers as global demand for dairy products, meat and cereals takes off and prices for them begin to rise. We are well placed to meet some of that demand and to underpin our own food security; but only if we can finally overcome the blight of TB.

It is an unpleasant decision to exterminate so many of these fine creatures, but government is about making difficult decisions for the greater good. It is time to cull and give our farmers a chance. What do you think?