Ian Boyd and Nigel Gibbens speak out

Defra's chief scientific adviser, Ian Boyd, and Chief Veterinary Officer, Nigel Gibbens, have spoken out about the badger cull "furore", stating that it is "distracting attention from the real problem."

Writing in the national press, Ian Boyd and Nigel Gibbens discuss how the furore created over the "undoubtedly emotive" decision to cull badgers has distracted attention from the real issue at stake - the "relentless increase" of bovine TB in the UK.

Even culling up to 26,000 cattle each year has not reduced the spread of infection, which they have labelled "one of the biggest threats to our dairy and cattle farmers", and by focussing on the badger cull, the undeniable problem of bovine TB has been forgotten.

Both Gibbens and Boyd defend the decision to cull badgers, saying: "Understandably, many people object to culling badgers, but this decision by ministers was taken based on the best available scientific evidence after more than 15 years of intensive research.

"We have made it clear that these culls alone will not solve the problem of TB in cattle. There is no single solution and they represent part of a comprehensive package of measures that the government is taking to arrest the increase in new bovine TB cases."

As well as defending the scientific background for the culls, they also discuss alternatives, such as vaccinations. The "limitations" of the badger vaccine are explored, as well as the ongoing investment into vaccine development over the next four years, including an oral vaccine for badgers.

They conclude that the task of managing bovine TB and bringing it under control "will not be easy. We need to use all the methods available to us and continue to develop new methods if we are going to succeed."

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