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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what criteria Natural England uses to assess applications for badger cull licences; and when such decisions on such applications will be announced.

Natural England assesses badger control licence applications using guidance issued under section 15(2) of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (NERC). The guidance can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-natural-england-preventing-spread-of-bovine-tb.

Decisions on this year’s licence applications will be announced before the start of badger control operations.