Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to her oral statement of 19 July 2011, Official Report, columns 811-24, on bovine tuberculosis, what mechanism she plans to use to derive culling targets.
Answer
There is a range of data already available on badger populations from both national and local surveys. In addition to these sources of information, applicants for culling licences would be required to provide Natural England with information regarding the number of main setts on the land which forms part of the application. From these, Natural England will be able to advise applicants on the estimated range of the number of badgers they would be expected to remove during the six-week intensive cull.