The badger cull is set for a parliamentary debate – all thanks to a viral petition

Wildlife campaign group Protect the Wild has garnered enough signatures on a petition to secure a debate in parliament over the Labour Party government’s continued maintenance of the cruel badger cull.

The petition calls for an immediate end to the badger cull. Alongside this, it demands the implementation of cow-focused measures to control bovine tuberculosis (bTB).

The organisation is now urging the petitions committee to schedule a debate on this critical issue in haste. This is so that policymakers can discuss bringing this despised and ineffective policy to an abrupt end. The government had effectively promised this to the electorate in the last general election.

Badger cull petition secures enough signatures for a parliamentary debate

In the lead up to the last election, the Labour Party vowed to “end the ineffective badger cull”. Yet, since taking power, the Labour government has continued the cull. Incredibly, the government says that culling could continue right up to the end of this parliament.

In November 2024, Protect the Wild sprung into action to challenge Labour’s continuation of the ineffective badger cull. It launched a new parliamentary petition. This calls for an end to the badger cull and demands the implementation of cow-focused measures to control bTB instead.

The petition reads:

The Government’s TB Eradication Strategy allows the continued killing of badgers, a protected species, until the end of this Parliament, despite the Labour manifesto calling the cull “ineffective.”

We believe the badger cull is unjustified and must end.

Some research has suggested culling results in a reduction in bovine TB (bTB) in cattle. However, there are concerns about the methodology used. Other research, which has been peer reviewed and published, shows no evidence that culling badgers reduces confirmed bTB in cattle. Over 230,000 badgers — many healthy — have been killed, disrupting ecosystems without solid scientific justification.

We call for an immediate end to the cull and the implementation of cattle focused measures to control bTB, rather than what we see as scapegoating wildlife.

Now, the petition has attracted the necessary number of signatures – 100,000 – for the it to be considered for a debate in parliament. This shows that the British public’s desire to see an end to the mass slaughter of the iconic badger is – as always – strong.

Time for Labour to step up and end the state-sanctioned badger killing

Protect the Wild argues that it is now incumbent on policymakers to act on voters’ demands.

For years, politicians of different stripes have told the public that they intend to end the badger cull, only to turn around and do the opposite in practice. The public has had enough – and so has Protect the Wild.

The group is calling out the current government and taking it to task over its perpetual excuses and empty words. Given the strength of public feeling, it argues that now is time for the government to put its money where its mouth is. It’s calling for Labour to end state-sanctioned badger killing with immediate effect.

Protect the Wild founder Rob Pownall says:

The government will no doubt claim it has a new TB eradication strategy in place – but the truth is, it’s complete rubbish. It’s just the same old scapegoating of badgers under a new name. The reality is this: badger culling is still set to continue until 2029. That’s another four years of state-sanctioned cruelty, flying in the face of science, public opinion, and even their own manifesto promises. It is a disgrace – and the British public knows it. This government has run out of excuses. It must end the cull now.

Featured image via the Canary