Defra published its response to the IEP report on the same day it published its 25-year TB eradication strategy. Defra accepted the majority of the recommendations put forward by the IEP and said it would work with Natural England, the NFU, the cull companies and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) to ensure the recommendations were implemented before culling was carried out in 2014.
The NFU had concerns about certain aspects of the IEP report, not least that its conclusions on humaneness (in particular the unjustified assumption that in all cases the time taken to confirm death was the actual time taken for a shot badger to die) and effectiveness were not reflected in the experiences of the people involved on the ground. It also made many assumptions based on anecdote, unpublished work which has not been peer reviewed, or selective use of evidence.
In our response to the report’s publication, NFU President Meurig Raymond said: “As pilots, there was always going to be the potential to make improvements as a result of knowledge gained. After all that is what pilots are for. They have helped to gain a greater understanding of how we can tackle the wildlife element of this terrible disease cycle.
“Importantly, the Independent Expert Panel has found this method of culling badgers by controlled shooting can be safe with best practice followed, even with the presence of protestors.
“While we don’t agree with all of the assumptions made in the IEP report, and we are concerned it paints a picture that is not recognised by those on the ground …. The panel does make some useful recommendations to improve the delivery of culling which will be implemented in Gloucestershire and West Somerset in subsequent years.”
In an oral statement to Parliament on April 3 2014, the then Defra Secretary of State Owen Paterson said: “The panel is confident that controlled shooting, when carried out in accordance with best practice guidance, poses no threat to public safety, even in the presence of local protest.
“The pilots showed that, in the majority of cases, shooting was accurate and can be a humane control method with minimal times to death. The panel made a number of key recommendations for improving the overall standards of accuracy and field craft of contractors, including training and assessment. I accept these recommendations and we are working to implement them with Natural England and the cull companies.
Responding to concerns over missing targets, Mr Paterson said: “Three of the ten areas in the badger culling trials between 1998 and 2005 also got off to a slow start, but by the end of the trial they had contributed to a reduction in TB. That is what we expect to happen here, especially after the panel’s recommendations for improving the effectiveness of culling are put into action.”
The recommendations on improving effectiveness were implemented ahead of the start of the second year of culling. These included more rigorous training for contractors and in-field assessment to ensure adherence to best practice guidance.
August/October 2014:
The Badger Trust lost its High Court challenge to stop the second year of the pilot culls taking place without the IEP in place. The Badger Trust argued that it was unlawful for the Government to continue the culls without the IEP being in place because the Government had promised that the IEP would continue after the first year of culling. The High Court disagreed, as did the Court of Appeal, finding that no such promise was made and therefore it was lawful for the Government to continue with the second year of culling without the IEP in place. However, the Government confirmed that, as recommended by the IEP, an independent audit of the monitoring of the effectiveness and humaneness of the culls would take place and the monitoring protocols and results for the culling in 2014 would be made publicly available.
December 2014:
Following the second year of culling, the Chief Veterinary Officer, Nigel Gibbens, said: “The outcome of this year’s cull in Somerset indicates that industry-led culling can, in the right circumstances, deliver the level of effectiveness required to be confident of achieving disease control benefits.
“Continued action is needed to increase levels of confidence in the effectiveness of any future culls, for example through contractor training and assessment, improved operational planning, monitoring and delivery.
“Judgements on humaneness must, by definition, be subjective, and therefore there is room for disagreement on what constitutes humaneness. Based on the evidence of two annual culls, my view is that the likelihood of suffering in badgers culled by controlled shooting remains comparable with the range of outcomes reported when other culling activities, currently accepted by society, have been assessed, such as deer shooting.”
August 2015:
Before the start of the third year of culling, the Chief Vet said: “Natural England has determined that a third year of badger culling can be authorised in Gloucestershire. Natural England has worked closely with local farmers preparing for the cull in Gloucestershire over the past months, and has carefully reviewed their operational plans and readiness before arriving at this decision.
“I reviewed in detail the basis for Natural England’s proposed decision before it was taken, and was satisfied that there was sufficient evidence to justify it.”