Progress in politics and science often happens by
accident. The unforeseen impact of the foot and
mouth epidemic may fall into this category. Both the
Ministry of Agriculture and vets were over-stretched
dealing with the crisis and so badger culling, which
was to have resumed on 1 May 2001, was suspended
for a year; even routine TB testing of cattle is on hold.
It seems probable that the Krebs/Bourne badger
culling trial will be abandoned altogether. At least
seven of the ten ‘triplet’ badger cull areas have been
disrupted, particularly in Devon/Cornwall and
Gloucestershire/Hereford. Some 600 of the 2900
badgers culled were in these two areas, perhaps 120
with TB, but only some 25 infectious. Since these were
from some 400 km2, encompassing 450 farms, it is
hard to see how the culls will have made the slightest
impact on cattle TB.
In fact it is already apparent that each TB badger
has cost some £35000, which merely confirms the
1986 findings of the Dunnet Review that badger culls
are a waste of money because they do not work.
Professor McInerney, as part of the review, noted that
ending badger culling was purely a political decision.
If Labour had won the 1992 election, contingency
plans were in place to end culls, but, sadly, by 1997
‘New’ Labour decided it was politically safer to go
ahead with the Krebs cull. Enough data ought to be
available from the trial to concoct ‘scientific’ reasons
to grasp the nettle and take the inevitable and long
overdue decision politically to end this sorry farce,
once and for all.