Badger Cull has emptied an ancient woodland of its Badgers
A “quiet tragedy” has unfolded in a beautiful ancient woodland in Northamptonshire. Everdon Stubbs has lost its badgers, with previously thriving setts now standing silent, according to the Northamptonshire Badger Group. The badger cull is to blame. Due to surrounding landowners’ participation in the murderous policy, the group says badgers have “vanished” locally, including from […]
We Did It — 100,000 Voices for Badgers!
Thanks to you, our government petition to end the badger cull has now surpassed 100,000 signatures — the threshold needed to trigger a debate in Parliament. This is a massive moment in our fight to protect one of Britain’s most iconic wild animals. And it’s only happened because you signed, shared, and stood up for […]
Government bovineTB strategy must protect badgers from persecution
In 2013, Sky News exposed an illegal badger gassing ring involving 14 farms in southwest England. With the badger cull just getting underway that year, the farmers involved were convinced that killing the wild animals would help to control the spread of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in cows and had taken matters into their own hands. […]
Government condemns 10,000 more badgers while decrying nature crisis
When the Labour Party was elected earlier this year, many people concerned about the nature crisis hoped the change of governance would mean an end to England’s badger cull. After all, the party branded the now over a decade-long massacre of badgers as “ineffective” in its manifesto and pledged to end the cull. These hopes […]
Government adviser tries to intimidate charities defending badgers
Government adviser Natural England has been accused of intimidating both the Badger Trust and Wild Justice as both charities take legal action against the badger cull. Back in May, Natural England approved yet more badger cull licences. It granted nine new Supplementary Badger Control licences and authorised 17 existing licences in 2024 – which were […]
45 years of Bern: The Convention that let down our badgers
The Bern Convention celebrated its 45th anniversary on 19 September. This treaty broke new ground when countries began signing it back in 1979, as it was the first international agreement to protect both wild species and their habitats. Through the years, Bern has proved instrumental in delivering protections to wildlife. It has also rolled out […]
‘New’ badger cull policy: still not good for badgers
On 30 August, Defra announced “Government to end badger cull with new TB eradication strategy”. It was, they said, the “first Bovine TB strategy in a decade to end the badger cull and drive down TB rates to protect farmers’ livelihood.” This announcement came less than two months after Labour was elected. They had promised […]
Adorable videos of badgers YOU helped save
Last year, Protect the Wild readers helped an East Sussex community to save badgers whose home was at threat from property developers. We’ve revisited the residents to see how the badgers are doing. And it’s great news: they are thriving! For four and a half years, the community was trying to buy a plot – […]
19,570 badgers were needlessly murdered in 2023. Sign our petition to stop the killing.
The government has released its latest figures on its annual badger cull, and the news is devastating. Another 19,570 badgers lost their lives in 2023, bringing the total murdered since 2013 to more than 230,000. Only a change in government will stop this senseless crime. Every year for the past decade, England’s badgers have been […]
Join our call to protect badgers
Join our call to Protect Badgers One of the country’s most iconic and most protected wild animals is being destroyed. Urged on by the National Farmers Union, what started as a four-year trial killing 70% of badgers in limited areas has now swelled into an all-out attack Already killed in huge numbers on our roads […]
Ireland: Badgers, wildlife crime, and a dangerous legal precedent
(This post has been written in collaboration with Ruairí Ó Leocháin of ‘Stand with Badgers’. Please note Ruari’s ask at the bottom of the page.) Speaking on wildlife crime in the Irish Examiner last December, veteran environmentalist and Green Party Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Electoral Reform Malcolm Noonan said “We are seeing […]
Badger Cull U-Turn: “Sunak now wants all the badgers dead”
Sunak now wants all the badgers dead and this looks like a last chance grab at getting widespread culling back in place so it is difficult for Labour to scrap it as promised, in favour of the urgent cattle testing policy revisions that Defra have suppressed with their BTB partnership cabal which was recently exposed on the Badger Crowd website.”
Government set to announce ALL badgers can be culled in specific areas
The government is likely to make an announcement that it is to cull 100% of badgers in specific areas of England from 2026. Back in early 2023, we wrote about Defra’s plan, but it was yet to be officially announced. Now the Independent has stated that the news is likely to become official within the […]
London Badger Cull Protest – Protesting a Decade of Dead Badgers
Please help protest a decade of the badger cull by coming to London on October 20th. Over the past 10 years, the government has licenced the deaths of a quarter of a million Badgers to protect the dairy industry from a disease of their own making – bovineTB. One of our most protected mammals, 260,000 […]
BADGERS SAVED! With your help, this community has protected badgers!
A community in East Sussex has protected a badger sett from being destroyed by developers. Their story is an inspiration to us all and a perfect example of how we can save wildlife if we work together. Protect the Wild supporters’ donations were also vital in helping the community purchase the land and save the […]
This community urgently needs your help to save badgers
Despite being a protected animal, badgers are perhaps our most persecuted species. One community in Saltdean, near Brighton, is urgently trying to save a sett of badgers from developers, and they need your help. Protect the Wild spoke to resident Debbie Julians, who, along with her neighbours, is trying to raise enough money to buy […]
Sad Badgers: Protesting the badger cull in Oxford
Yesterday Protect the Wild joined masked- and badger-suited members of the Oxford Badger Coalition and Oxfordshire Badger Group on the streets of Oxford. Under sunny skies and humid conditions (which made wearing a furry, cumbersome badger suit very hard work indeed so kudos to Betty and the rest!) we found ourselves in the midst of […]
The government has set out its stall over culling badgers, and it’s not pretty
Environment secretary Thérèse Coffey said that she won’t keep to “artificial deadlines” over ending the badger cull. And her words come just as plans were confirmed for tens of thousands more deaths at the hands of farmers. At the opening of the Royal Cornwall Show, Coffey told the public that she believes there is “no […]
Damning new report slates government’s future plans to annihilate badgers
The government has said that it will end the badger cull as we know it by 2026. But it will replace intensive four-year culling with a plan to murder 100% of badgers in specific areas of England. Now a new report – authored by independent researchers, veterinarians, and epidemiologists – argues that these continued plans […]
Northern Ireland: men responsible for fate of badgers have vested interest in cull
Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) is inching closer to culling badgers after it asked companies to submit “expressions of interests to deliver the culling element” of its bovine TB (bTB) strategy. The deadline for applications is today (21 April 2023). The government department said that it will introduce culls in […]
The government murdered 33,627 badgers in 2022. It tested zero for bovine TB
The government, influenced by its farming lobby friends, continues to scapegoat badgers for the spread of bovine tuberculosis (bTB). Yet it didn’t test one of the 33,627 badgers culled in 2022 for the disease. Natural England, which works on behalf of Defra, recently published its figures of the number of badgers murdered in the 2022 […]
Government sanctions killing of 7,500 badgers in Avon since 2019
England’s badger population is being annihilated, and one of the worst-hit areas is Avon, in the southwest. 1,521 badgers were murdered in the region throughout September and October 2022 during the government’s annual cull. Avon has two ‘cull zones’ which Natural England issues licences for. One zone was in its fourth and final year of […]
As Defra ends vaccination scheme, the fate of badgers is bleak
As the government’s badger bovine tuberculosis (bTB) vaccination scheme comes to an end, campaigners have accused Defra of pulling the rug from under them. The Badger Edge Vaccination Scheme (BAVS) was due to run from 2019 to 2023. The government provided some funding towards private projects to vaccinate badgers in the so-called ‘Edge Area’ – […]
In his new TV show, Jeremy Clarkson laments that you can’t shoot or gas badgers
The badger is Britain’s most persecuted animal. It is attacked on many fronts – by the government during its annual badger cull, by badger baiters, and by the fox hunting community. But in his new programme, Clarkson’s Farm, Jeremy Clarkson spouts dangerous lies about the creatures. And now the Badger Trust has hit out at […]
Badgers and the Law
Badgers and the Law Badgers are protected in law by the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 (passed to consolidate law previously contained in the Badgers Act 1973, the Badgers Act 1991 and the Badgers (Further Protection) Act 1991) and so are their setts (setts include entrances, tunnels, and underground chambers). Licences may be granted by […]
GUILTY: Terrierman convicted under Protection of Badgers Act
On 27 January 2023, Devon County Hunt Saboteurs (DCHS) announced that sabs had secured yet another conviction. Spooners and West Dartmoor Hunt terrierman Mark Harris was found guilty under the Protection of Badgers Act after sabs caught terriermen digging out a badger sett. DCHS said: “Sabs’ actions on the day not only saved the fox’s […]
Badgers face daily persecution recently blocked setts show
Police in two counties are appealing for information following the discovery of blocked badger setts. And it’s a reminder that one of Britain’s most iconic mammals continues facing daily persecution. On 23rd January, news reports came out of blocked badger setts found in both Lincolnshire and Worcestershire. LincolnshireLive said that police had launched a public […]
What have badgers go to do with the bird shooting industry?
What have badgers got to do with bird shooting? Badgers have been hunted, baited, mistreated, exploited, and treated appallingly by humans for centuries. Both they and their setts are now protected by the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, but since the start of the badger cull – the government-sanctioned killing of a protected species to […]
Baiters in Norfolk are torturing badgers to gain social media status
Masked-up groups in Norfolk are setting their dogs on badgers to kill them, according to local news website Norwich Evening News. The website reported that the gangs are often livestreaming their kills so that viewers can bet on the outcome of the fights between the badgers and the dogs. Norwich Evening News said: “Kevin Murphy, […]
Speaking up for badgers at the Court of Appeal
Speaking up for badgers at the Court of Appeal On July 21st I posted a podcast (Badger Culls, Biodiversity, Birds, and the High Court) with ecologists Tom Langton and Dominic Woodfield which looked at the background to a challenge they were taking to the Court of Appeal on July 26th (yesterday). The conversation was complex […]
End the Badger Blame Game Petition
End badger culling and badger vaccination for good. First name Last name Email Phone Subject Letter To Angela Eagle MP, Minister of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs We, the undersigned, are calling on you to end the badger blame game and bring an immediate stop to the remaining badger cull in England, […]
New report shows convictions for wildlife crime offences at record low
A report by a coalition of charities reveals that only a tiny fraction of reported wildlife crimes lead to a prosecution and that convictions for offences like badger baiting, hare coursing, illegal trapping, unlawful trade in endangered species and illegal hunting are currently at an all time low. Wildlife and Countryside Link have made a […]
Badger business: Protect the Wild’s first round-up of badger-related news
Protect the Wild began writing regular round-ups showcasing the latest news in the struggle against fox hunting earlier this year. Moving forward, we will be producing similar periodic digests on the badger cull and other news related to this treasured yet persecuted species. Here is the Autumn round-up for all you badger lovers! In this […]
Death by a thousand failures – What DEFRA’s governance means for wildlife
Protect the Wild has released a new report about the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ (DEFRA) governance of the farming sector – and how it is failing to protect wildlife. Here’s why we wrote it. For years now, Protect the Wild has vigorously campaigned against the badger cull. It’s clear to us that […]
Labour’s Planning Bill: pro-growth changes disastrous for wildlife
In April, dozens of environmental experts signed an open letter opposing the government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill (PIB). But on 13 October, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced several further “pro-growth” changes to the bill. According to a Gov.UK press-release, new powers “for the Secretary of State could stop councils rejecting planning […]
Hunting News Early October: Two beagle packs fold and more
With the so-called ‘season’ for hunting hares in full swing, there’s reason to cheer: two of the UK’s hare hunting beagle packs have announced that they will be folding. In other news: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has dropped the case against a Cottesmore Hunt terrierman despite damning covert footage gathered by Northants Hunt Saboteurs. […]
How a Drone Is Helping Protect Wildlife from Hunts in the Moors
Two years ago we launched “The Protect the Wild Equipment Fund’, saying that it would provide equipment to individuals or groups who are working as ‘eyes in the field’ to tackle wildlife crime and protect wildlife. Our first purchase was radios for the excellent Cheshire Borderland Monitors, who wrote in a blog for us that […]
The Post Office Scandal of Wildlife: Badger Cull Exposed as a Catastrophic Mistake
The badger cull strategy, based on the results of the 1998 – 2005 Randomised Badger Control Trial (RBCT), put the wheels in motion for the widespread killing of badgers that has occurred over the last decade. Pushed by Defra and the NFU as the best way to control Bovine TB – a disease now widely […]
Mid September hunting news update: Norfolk terrierman convicted of animal cruelty and more
In this mid-September fox hunting news update we report on the conviction of a Norwich based terrierman for not providing medical care to a Patterdale terrier under his care. In addition: On 26 February hunt monitor Chantelle Leach was assaulted by a hunt supporter. We reported at the time that Essex Police treated her case […]
Dead ducks and geese: Lindisfarne, NE, and BASC
On 01 September we reported the shocking news that shooting lobbyists BASC (the British Association for Shooting and Conservation) were “raffling ducks and geese to be shot on National Nature Reserve”. In the post we stated that BASC were holding a raffle to “win two days’ guided wildfowling for you and a friend at Lindisfarne […]
Dartmoor: one of England’s most hunted and shot-over pieces of real estate.
As the cubbing and hunting ‘season’ starts again in earnest, we are also getting ever closer to the beginning of another few months of gunning down pheasants and partridges. Protect the Wild is looking at key regions of the UK that attract both tourists who want to enjoy the wildlife and landscape and hunters and […]
Bureau of Bern Convention tells UK: End the Cull
An international wildlife treaty body has called on the UK government to swiftly bring its years-long slaughter of the iconic and protected badger to an end. Following a meeting in June, the Bureau of the Bern Convention issued a decision, which instructed the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to “move with greater […]
Mid August fox hunting update – Cubbing foiled in Devon and more
In this mid-August fox hunting update, hunts around the UK have begun the Summer ‘cubbing season’. Cubbing is the disgraceful practice of hunting and killing young foxes and hares (leverets) to give their new hounds a taste for blood. Our stories this month include: – Sabs and monitors organise to stop cubbing. – Police forces […]
Moorland Association says ‘Predators rising, Birds disappearing’…but they would, wouldn’t they
The ‘Inglorious 12th’, the start of the grouse shooting season, is just days away. It’s absolutely no coincidence at all, then, that the Moorland Association (MA), the lobby group for grouse shooting estate owners, has published an article which essentially claims that everything they do (in terms of ‘predator control’) is good, and everything the […]
Late July Fox Hunting News Update: Reports of early Cubbing and more
In this packed late July fox hunting news update, reports are coming in that some hunts have started cubbing and levereting (hunting fox cubs and baby hares) early. Meanwhile, wildlife defenders are busy organising against them, through direct action in the fields and via targeted campaigning too. Our stories this time include: – Action Against […]
Suspended Labour MP consistent opponent of Planning & Infrastructure Bill
The Labour Party is currently steamrolling through its Planning and Infrastructure (PI) Bill (which will strip away many of the remaining environmental protections from the UK’s precious wild regions). The party recently suspended North East Hertfordshire MP Chris Hinchliff after he dared to oppose the government’s plans. Hinchliff has been a consistent critic of the […]
Badger dies overnight in snare on shooting estate
In May, Protect the Wild was contacted by a member of the South Yorkshire Badger Group (SYBG), a small group dedicated to the welfare, conservation, study, monitoring and public awareness of badgers. SYBG contacted us after being sent an email by a member of the public who had come across a badger caught in a […]
July fox hunting update: The hypocrisy of pro-hunt puppy shows
As the British countryside breathes a sigh of relief at a short Summer respite from fox hunting (and commercial bird shooting), many hunts are using this time to promote themselves and fundraise for next season. One regular fixture in the pro-hunt calendar are the annual puppy shows and hound shows, where hunting dogs are shown […]
Animal Sentience Committee raises concerns over Labour’s pay-to-trash plans
The British parliament’s new Animal Sentience Committee (ASC) has raised concerns that Labour’s proposed Planning and Infrastructure (PI) Bill will affect animal welfare. Steve Reed, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, is obliged to reply to the committee’s findings within three months. The ASC was set up as a result of […]
A timely new probe strengthens case for ending the badger cull
More scientific analysis has been published discrediting the idea that badger culling can contribute to control of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in cows. The new evaluation comes amid a scientific review of bTB control measures as the government develops its elimination strategy for the disease. In 2024, researchers published an explosive study (‘Absence of effects of […]
Five reasons the Planning and Infrastructure bill will be disastrous for British wildlife
Labour’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill aims to allow companies to pay to trash the British countryside. It will do away with existing checks and balances in the planning system and establish a legal framework allowing developers to destroy irreplaceable natural ecosystems. Corporations will pay into a planned Nature Restoration Fund in order to ‘offset’ the […]
REVEALED: Farm inspection findings undermine case for badger cull
In England, badgers have been slaughtered in their hundreds of thousands since 2013 for the alleged role they play in spreading bovine tuberculosis (bTB) to cows. Now, freedom of information requests, seen by Protect the Wild, have revealed the state of biosecurity on farms participating in the cull. They show that a significant proportion of […]