Summary of responses on applications for a badger disease control licence
Updated 28 October 2022
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/bovine-tb-comment-on-an-application-for-a-badger-disease-control-licence-february-2022/outcome/summary-of-responses-on-applications-for-a-badger-disease-control-licence
As part of the badger disease control licence application process, Natural England invited members of the public to provide information on issues that may be relevant to its licensing decision.
Opportunity to Comment period
Natural England has run the Opportunity to Comment (OTC) over the last 10 years in counties across the High, Edge and Low Risk Areas of England where a licence application has been submitted.
Public notices were published in the local press and advertised on the GOV.UK website[footnote 1].
Responses to previous OTCs are available at: www.gov.uk/search/policy-papers-and-consultations.
Summary of responses
Natural England has received applications or expressions of interest for a badger disease control licence in 2022 to prevent the spread of bovine tuberculosis in cattle. The public were able to comment on how badger control in their area might affect their livelihood or daily activities.
A total of 42 responses were received for the OTC that ran from 7 February 2022 to 21 February 2022 and 0 responses were received for the OTC that ran from 30 March 2022 to 13 April 2022.Table 1 shows a summary of responses received in each county.
Table 1: Summary of responses for each county
| County | Responses received |
|---|---|
| Buckinghamshire | 2 |
| Cheshire | 2 |
| Cornwall | 3 |
| Derbyshire | 33 |
| Devon | 1 |
| Northamptonshire | 1 |
General themes
The following general themes were raised by respondents:
- business and tourism - respondents believed that badger control could negatively impact visitor numbers and local services, such as wildlife research and rescue centres
- ecological - respondents expressed concerns about the impact on other wildlife species
- biosecurity - respondents highlighted biosecurity should be increased on farms
- vaccination - regarding vaccination as an alternative control method in badgers or highlighting the use of a cattle vaccine
- health and safety including mental health - respondents feared that the firearms and methods used in control would affect their safety and mental health
- recreation - respondents expressed concerns of how control methods could impact their recreational activities such as walking
Conclusion
Natural England will notify applicants of the responses related to their area. Prior to making a licensing decision, it will also take account of relevant mitigation measures that applicants have put in place.