A new controversy has erupted as the UK government faces renewed accusations of manipulating science to justify the mass killing of badgers. Under the current Labour administration, a secretive review on bovine TB (bTB) control has been launched, but critics claim it is little more than a mechanism to “maintain the status quo” regarding the contentious badger cull.
The review, initiated in January by DEFRA under minister Daniel Zeichner, is purportedly designed to examine the latest evidence on bTB policy. However, concerns have been raised about the impartiality of the panel appointed to conduct the review. Rather than selecting neutral experts, DEFRA has again chosen long-time pro-cull academics and industry insiders—figures who have historically supported the policy they are now tasked with reviewing, reported by the canary.
