The Badger Crowd

Will Defra advise Labour to U-turn and allow badger culling?
New blog: thebadgercrowd.org/will-defra-a...

And an article in Vet Record last Friday "understands the possibility of allowing some small-scale ‘epidemiologically led’ culling may be kept open by the government as a contingency". Not over yet....

Playing Possum - The Badger Crowd - standing up for badgers Surely Ireland is not serious about a Test Vaccinate Remove policy for badgers? It is difficult to believe, but the vets of Dublin and Belfast now appear to be using far-fetched claims from New Zealan...

Sadly, a new policy of TVR (Test Vaccinate Remove) is coming to Ireland (cross border); see blog thebadgercrowd.org/playing-possum.

Playing Possum. Surely Ireland is not serious about a Test Vaccinate Remove policy for badgers?
thebadgercrowd.org/playing-possum

Cubs play 1 YouTube video by Badgerman and Robin

Cubs play 1: a very early emergence at #clownclan @badgertrust.bsky.social @badgercrowd.bsky.social @nationaltrust.org.uk @the-wildlifetrusts.bsky.social #wildlife #ukwildlife #badger #badgers
youtu.be/w4-x3horQ_Y

We will never stop fighting for this iconic British species

2025 News round-up - The Badger Crowd - standing up for badgers Annual review of science of bovine TB and badgers, looking at new scientific publications, parliamentary debates, government reviews

thebadgercrowd.org/2025-news-ro...

2025 News round-up - The Badger Crowd - standing up for badgers Annual review of science of bovine TB and badgers, looking at new scientific publications, parliamentary debates, government reviews

Bovine TB and Badgers....

A 2025 news round-up

thebadgercrowd.org/2025-news-ro...

‘Perturbation Effect Hypothesis’ for badgers and Bovine TB is now unevidenced The ‘perturbation effect hypothesis’ is the reported ‘negative’ effect of reactive and proactive badger culling, described in the Donnelly et al (2006) paper “Positive and negative effects of wides…

‘Perturbation Effect Hypothesis’ for badgers and Bovine TB is now unevidenced
thebadgercrowd.org/bovine-tb-ba...

Cattle tuberculosis; badgers finally in the clear - British Wildlife Bovine tuberculosis; badgers finally in the clear In the May 2023 issue of British Wildlife, I described the ‘weakened link’ between badgers and bovine TB (bTB) infection in cattle. Since that…

Bovine tuberculosis; badgers finally in the clear!

If you’d like to receive future newsletters, you can sign up at: www.britishwildlife.com/sign-up-to-o...

And following Rosie Wood of @badgertrust.bsky.social ’s recent column on the ongoing legal battle surrounding badger culling in the UK, @tomlangton.bsky.social summarises findings from recent research on bovine tuberculosis and badgers. Read the feature here: www.britishwildlife.com/cattle-tuber...

The latest British Wildlife newsletter is now available, our monthly round-up from the magazines featuring exclusive book reviews, highlights from the back catalogue, and conversations with our authors. You can read the November newsletter here: us6.campaign-archive.com?e=__test_ema...

BTB control contradictions at the APHA In late November 2025 APHA published online their annual report on bTB for last year: “Bovine tuberculosis in England in 2024 Epidemiological analysis of the 2024 surveillance data and historical t…

BTB control contradictions at the APHA

thebadgercrowd.org/contradictio...

Low Risk Area (LRA) culling must be scrapped for good A Cumbria badger bloodbath At the Westminster Hall Debate on the 13th October, Angela Eagle the Defra Minister of State confirmed that the badger cull would come to an end in February 2026 in all b…

Low Risk Area (LRA) culling must be scrapped for good
thebadgercrowd.org/low-risk-are...

High Court rejects Natural England bid to hike legal costs for campaigners challenging badger culling - Wild Justice An attempt by Natural England to hike campaigners’ legal costs to challenge badger culling licences has been blocked by the […]

Natural England tried to price us out of taking legal action against Badger culling but it backfired when the High Court threw out NE's claim ⚖️

We continue. Substantive legal challenge against NE Badger cull licences takes place in December 🦡

Press release 🔽

wildjustice.org.uk/badgers/high...

Westminster Hall debate on ending Badger Culling, 13 October 2025 The Westminster Hall debate of the Protect the Wild petition, held on 13th October, was a significant improvement on previous badger cull debates.  The majority of voices spoke earnestly about a wi…

Westminster Hall debate on ending Badger Culling, 13 October 2025
thebadgercrowd.org/westminster-...

"The Randomised Badger Culling Trial (1998-2005); proactive badger culling analyses were not weak, but invalid."

Follow-up to the recent Bovine TB strategy review update by the Godfray panel, new preprint;

figshare.com/articles/dat...

2038 Bovine TB targets on the scrap heap, with details of failed policy increasingly exposed Why was the use of Gamma interfreon testing, alongside use of the tuberculin test (SICCT), under-declared in APHA’s central bovine TB control evaluation paper (Birch et al 2024) last year, and also…

2038 Bovine TB targets on the scrap heap, with details of failed policy increasingly exposed

thebadgercrowd.org/2038-bovine-...

Godfray ‘science’ report simply adds to the bovine TB chaos Panel Chair: Professor Sir Charles Godfray The long-awaited ‘Godfray’ report, a review of scientific evidence since 2018 concerning bovine TB in cattle, was published on 4th September. …

Badger Crowd looks at 'Chapter 6. The disease in wildlife' in Godfray's recent review of bovine TB science

thebadgercrowd.org/godfray-scie...

Cattle testing with Gamma interferon On 19th August, Defra sent an email to ‘stakeholders’ announcing that as part of the work to refresh the bTB strategy, it will be “enhancing test sensitivity in cattle herds”. This is “…

Cattle testing with Gamma interferon
thebadgercrowd.org/enhanced-cat...

Is Diddly Squat Farm seeing the light on bovine TB testing and spread? The Diddly Squat Farm, owned by TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson and a part of the ‘Clarkson’s Farm TV show’, was the subject last week of multiple media reports on positive bovine TB tests in their sm…

Is Diddly Squat Farm seeing the light on bovine TB testing and spread?

thebadgercrowd.org/jeremy-clark...

The Cornwall badger vaccination project – why the secrecy and confusion? On 30th July, Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle Green received a reply to her written Parliamentary Question: “To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the paper by To…

The Cornwall badger vaccination project – why the secrecy and confusion?
thebadgercrowd.org/the-new-badg...

Vacuous  vaccination? Badger blame folly continues undercover Have you noticed how quiet the NFU have become over badger culling since Labour came to power?  Why could this be? Badger Politics In 2024 there was an agree…

The push for badger vaccination...what's behind it?

thebadgercrowd.org/vacuous-vacc...

The 2025 ‘Torgerson’ scientific paper “The fall of the perturbation effect hypothesis” Professor Paul Torgerson The new scientific Comment paper by Paul Torgerson and colleagues was published on 11 June in Royal Society Ope…

The 2025 ‘Torgerson’ scientific paper

thebadgercrowd.org/the-new-torg...

Government say they will look at newly published evidence on statistical flaws in Randomised Badger Culling Trial in their review of bTB science
www.vettimes.com/news/vet-nur...

Campaigner from Welwyn wins national award for fighting to protect badgers A passionate campaigner from Welwyn has received a national award for her dedication and commitment to fighting for the protection of badgers.

Well deserved award for Herts Badger group member Mary Barton.
www.whtimes.co.uk/news/2528155...

Important review of new RBCT analysis:

publons.com/wos-op/revie...

BREAKING: The science behind the badger cull just collapsed Yet more scientific evidence emerges that discredits the government's scandalous badger killing policy

Yet more scientific evidence emerges that discredits the government's scandalous badger killing policy

protectthewild.substack.com/p/a-timely-n...