THE fight over the government’s plan to kill thousands of badgers to curb tuberculosis infections in cattle will go the high court on Monday.
The Badger Trust will tell a judicial review that the proposed action, which follows the death of 25,000 UK cattle in 2010, is neither legal nor scientifically justified.
Jeff Hayden of the Badger Trust said the trust had a “duty” to make the high court challenge. He added: “We are challenging this on legal and science grounds – and we really don’t think it will help reduce TB in cattle.”
A Defra spokesman said: “Bovine TB is a chronic and devastating disease and is taking a terrible toll on our farmers and rural communities. Nobody wants to cull badgers. But no country in the world where wildlife carries TB has eradicated the disease in cattle without tackling it in wildlife too.
“Unless TB is effectively dealt with it will cost taxpayers around �1bn over the next 10 years.”
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