A SELBORNE farmer joined others from across the country on Tuesday in an NFU march against the Government's decision not to issue badger culling licences to fight bovine tuberculosis. South Devon cattle breeder David Ashcroft condemns environment secretary Hilary Benn who told the Commons on Monday that the Government would not be issuing licences to allow badger culling. Instead there would be a £20m investment over three years to develop usable cattle and badger vaccines. Mr Ashcroft joined farmers in London to march on Portcullis House to confront ministers over what they view as an "abdication of responsibility" which will not only threaten agricultural livelihoods but have a serious knock-on effect on the food chain. Mr Ashcroft believes that, with a general election looming, the Government has decided to crucify cattle farmers rather than risk votes by allowing controlled culling of sick badgers. He told The Herald: "There's a TB fire burning and the Government is not taking any further measures to stem the spread." Mr Ashcroft, a member of the National Farmers Union SE region livestock board, points out that in the 1970s bovine TB had been virtually eradicated in the UK but, since the Badger Act was introduced in 1993 research has been focused on finding a vaccine and the UK has seen a 77 per cent increase in the spread of disease. The badger has no natural predators. Its main threat is the motor car and, according to Mr Ashcroft, it lives in a culture where, having reached maturity, young badgers are pushed out and have to move to another sett, which increases the spread of TB. Trials in the West Country have shown that with tracing of badgers back to their setts and testing of dung, it is possible to find out which setts are affected by TB and to destroy those animals, thereby stemming the spread. "Everybody loves badgers, farmers included, but at the moment sick badgers are being allowed to infect healthy animals. "Cattle are constantly monitored for TB and if they test positive they are destroyed – but badgers can't be touched," said the farmer who points out that last year 24,000 cattle were slaughtered in this country and the numbers are rising. In the first four months of this year the figure already stands at 13,500. NFU president Peter Kendall has denounced the secretary of state's refusal to cull badgers as part of a TB control programme, despite admitting that a cull 'might work' in his statement to the House of Commons. "This is a disgraceful abdication of responsibility by secretary of state Hilary Benn," said Mr Kendall. "Despite his promise to base his decision on facts, he has ignored the evidence of the Independent Scientific Group report, the recommendation of the DEFRA select committee and that of Professor Sir David King, in reaching his conclusion. It is a total non-decision. "To admit that a cull might work, and then push the already crippling burden of TB controls further onto the farming industry is just plain wrong. It is ridiculous to expect farmers to continue fighting TB with one hand tied behind their back." Mr Ashcroft says that cattle breeders like himself have to test for TB prior to sale and that when they buy there is always a post-movement test. He has only experienced one incident when an animal, from the West Country, tested positive, but that was 10 years ago. "Hampshire is one of the lucky counties, we have no TB at the moment but the disease is in Wiltshire – it is getting close. He said that. with the vegetarian minister "preferring to see farmers and their families suffer rather than hurt the badgers" waiting for bovine TB to advance was like "sitting beneath the Sword of Damocles" and waiting for it to drop.
