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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of extending the badger cull; and if she will make a statement.

The UK Chief Veterinary Officer has published his advice that the outcome of the 2016 badger culling operations indicates that industry-led culling can deliver the level of effectiveness required to be confident of achieving disease control benefits.

The UK Chief Veterinary Officer’s advice can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-chief-veterinary-officers-advice-on-the-outcome-of-the-2016-badger-culls