A report published by DAERA which summarised responses made by various organisations to a public consultation on future proposals to eradicate bovine TB in NI, contained some errors.

As reported in last week’s edition dated 18 December 2021, nearly 85% of respondents to the consultation were in favour of the DAERA proposal to remove badgers by controlled shooting in TB hotspot areas.

However, the summary report highlighted that a number of organisations expressed opposition to that plan, including farmer-funded research body AgriSearch.

The answers to consultation questions attributed to AgriSearch in the original DAERA document were not correct, and the report has since been updated.

In its actual response to the consultation, AgriSearch urged the Department to do all in its power to tackle the disease, and was generally supportive of the actions as proposed.

“We believe that DAERA’s proposed option for wildlife intervention is based on sound science and empirical evidence of similar schemes operating in other parts of the British Isles,” reads the AgriSearch response.

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