In January there was a victory in the courts in that Natural England has lost their appeal to withhold information about the wider ecological impacts of badger culling. This is something we can thank the ecologist Tom Langton for after Natural England refused to supply him with all the details he requested to properly assess the damage badger culling may cause to wildlife. Please follow this link, Tribunal Press Release to see the press release from The Badger Crowd, which is a group that has been set up to help Tom fight his case and put a stop to the badger cull.

Last year Tom made a number of Judicial Review applications which challenge the lawfulness of the process behind approvals of ‘supplementary badger culling’. He has since had these applications granted and listed for a three-day High Court Hearing. In order for this hearing to stand any chance of being successful, funding of around £15,000 is needed to help cover immediate legal costs plus a further £40,000+ is estimated to be needed to cover future legal costs. There are some online fundraising pages that have been set up where people can donate to help raise the money. These can be found at the following links:

https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/help-stop-unlawful-badger-cull/ 
https://www.justgiving.com/campaigns/charity/badgertrust/nomoresecrets

It is important that sufficient funds are made available to allow these hearings to be fully carried through with the best legal support possible as a win will have serious implications on the future of the badger cull. Donating to this cause gives us one of the greatest chances to date of ending the Government's ill thought out and cruel badger culling policy. This is a policy which has absolutely no scientific evidence to support that it is achieving its goal of reducing bovine tuberculosis in cattle.  If the policy is carried through it will be a major threat to the future of one of this country's most iconic and much loved land mammals.

Here is link to a message from The Badger Crowd which gives an update on the legal challenge and status of their funding Badger Crowd Update 3rd March, 2018.

The Badger Trust launched its new “Give Badgers a Brake” campaign during National Badger Week to raise awareness of the dangers that badgers face on our roads”.

Every year an alarming 50,000 badgers are killed on roads in the UK. As our road network becomes bigger and busier, the risk to badgers and other wildlife becomes greater. This campaign not only raises awareness of this problem but also provides advice on what can be done to help make our roads safer for all wildlife.

Together with the Badger Trust, our Groups Patron, Mike Dilger, has helped produce a video which highlights the dangers badgers face on our roads and show what can be done to try and protect them from this increasing danger.

To find out more, visit the Badger Trust Website www.badgertrust.org.uk or their Facebook and Twitter pages #GiveUsABrake