BRITISH WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT - Correspondence
DEfRA TB in Badgers - the Consultation
Subject: RE: WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RELATED TB ISSUES
Mr Marriage,
We are not at liberty to disclose the name of the research agency that will
be carrying out the citizens panels.
bTB Wildlife Policy Team
-----Original Message-----
From: Edmund Marriage [mailto:
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Sent: 08 February 2006 10:55
To: bTB Consultation (AHTBD)
Subject: RE: WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RELATED TB ISSUES
Many thanks - would you mind telling me the name of the research agency.
Edmund Marriage - British Wildlife Management.
-----Original Message-----
From: bTB Consultation (AHTBD) [mailto:
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Sent: Wednesday, February 08, 2006 10:09 AM
To: 'Edmund Marriage'
Subject: RE: WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RELATED TB ISSUES
Mr Marriage
The citizens Panels will be organised run by a Research agency who will
select participants so that they are representative of the population.
Appropriately Defra will not be involved in the selection of participants.
Informed public opinion will be obtained through Citizens panels and through
the extensive responses we have had to the consultation.
Regards
bTB Wildlife Policy Team
-----Original Message-----
From: Edmund Marriage [mailto:
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Sent: 02 February 2006 18:02
To: bTB Consultation (AHTBD)
Subject: RE: WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RELATED TB ISSUES
Many thanks - Please will you inform me of the locations and dates of the
series of citizen panels to be held nearer the end of the consultation, to
seek informed public opinion on the issue.
Where do you expect to find informed public opinion ?
Kind regards,
Edmund Marriage - British Wildlife Management
-----Original Message-----
From: bTB Consultation (AHTBD) [mailto:
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Sent: Thursday, February 02, 2006 3:44 PM
To: 'Edmund Marriage'
Subject: RE: WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RELATED TB ISSUES
Mr Marriage,
Thank you for your query regarding the consultation on badger culling for
the purposes of controlling bovine TB in high incidence areas in England.
Any comments/queries you have on this consultation should be directed to bTB
Consultation, either by email (to this address) or in writing to bovine TB
and badgers consultation, Defra, 1A Page Street, SW1P 4PQ. The consultation
team read and log all responses to the consultation, responding to any
queries. The analysis of the consultation will be carried out and published
on Defra's website.
We are taking a number of measures to engage both the public and
stakeholders during the consultation, including the Annual Bovine TB
Conference on the 6th and a series of citizens panels held nearer the end of
the consultation to seek informed public option on the issue.
We are aware that a number of stakeholder groups will be holding regional
meetings to inform their response to the consultation.
Regards
bTB Wildlife Policy Team
-----Original Message-----
From: Edmund Marriage [mailto:
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Sent: 02 February 2006 10:27
To: bTB Consultation (AHTBD)
Subject: WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AND RELATED TB ISSUES
Please will you confirm or deny the existence of regional seminars to allow
representations to be made on proposals both for the removal of all
reservoirs of TB infection as recommended by the ISG last week, and for the
humane and competent professional management of the uncontrolled badger
population.
Please can you identify who will be accepting and reading the written
submissions, where they should be sent, and who are the senior Defra staff
involved in advising Government Ministers on the TB and Wildlife Management
related issues.
Kind regards,
Edmund Marriage.
-----Original Message-----
From: Filley, Teresa (AHTBD) [mailto:
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Sent: Friday, January 20, 2006 11:47 AM
To: 'Edmund Marriage'
Subject: RE: FIRST ANNUAL BOVINE TB MEETING FOR GREAT BRITAIN
Dear Mr Marriage,
thank you for your email of 17 January. I attach a response from TB
Communications Unit.
regards
Teresa Filley
TB Communications Unit
20 January 2006
-----Original Message-----
From: Edmund Marriage [mailto:
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Sent: 17 January 2006 16:54
To: tb, comms (AHADC)
Cc: Ben Bradshaw; Jim Knight; Secretariat - PUS (Lords) (Secretariat);
Secretariat - Secretary of State (Secretariat); Ainsworth, Helen (AHTBD);
Arkle, Tanya (EW); Gross, K (GOV); John Gallagher; David Denny;
Twink Allen
Subject: FIRST ANNUAL BOVINE TB MEETING FOR GREAT BRITAIN
Dear Organisers,
I have today received an invitation to the above event to be held on 6th
March, I am concerned that the Wildlife and Conservation perspective is
being presented by a speaker from the Badger Trust, who are clearly in the
business of protecting species, rather than considering the management and
welfare needs of all our precious wildlife, especially those predated by
uncontrolled badgers.
We are now at a crossroads where Government has accommodated Animal Rights
organisations in supporting protection policies, but is now faced with the
prospect of explaining to the British public the massive ecological and
health problems that protection policies have caused, together with
unprecedented unnecessary cost.
The NFU is well equipped to present the case for the farming industry, but
is not able to present the crucial case for wildlife welfare and management,
which involves specialist knowledge and skills in removing reservoirs of
infection, controlling badger numbers and establishing a healthy population
of badgers in balance with other important species.
British Wildlife Management is the only organisation able and willing to
support the Government on the wildlife management and welfare issues, in
order that the Badger/TB problems can eventually be properly and rapidly
resolved.
For this reason I ask that I am allowed to speak at this meeting and be
given the same length of time to that allocated to the Badger Trust, to
balance the debate on the grossly neglected wildlife welfare and management
issues.
Background Long Established Realities.
Bovine TB is a serious infectious disease of badgers, which also affects
other wildlife, cattle, and has potential human health risks. This has
become a very serious problem, directly as result of Badger Protection
legislation, which has removed the necessary controls on badger numbers. As
with most species on the planet, overcrowding leads to more competition for
food, poor accommodation, under nourishment, susceptibility to parasites and
disease, and subsequent death from the build up of life threatening
parasites or infections.
The very significant increase in badger numbers has resulted in an unhealthy
badger population creating more reservoirs of infection, which greatly
contribute to the spread of the disease to other species. Because old and
sick badgers are pushed out to the outer limits of group territory, by
younger members of their families, a relatively small increase of badger
numbers, provides a significantly higher risk of infecting livestock, where
they come into contact in the same habitat. The old sick badgers will tend
to be the first to look to share food and water with cattle, thereby
directly planting infected material amongst otherwise healthy animals. The
management neglect at the League Against Cruel Sports red deer Sanctuary at
Dulverton is very good example of deteriorating health, leading to high
infection of TB in a situation where overcrowding is allowed to take place.
A Government supported Wildlife Management Strategy is the only possible
successor to the range of failed Wildlife Protection schemes put in place by
so called conservation organisations.
Government must grasp the Wildlife Management message in order to get the
public on their side on a wide range of what can only be good management
practices, which include killing both sick and healthy badgers. Protection
equates with the neglect which has unnecessarily created the current
catastrophe.
We have a duty of care to deploy mans benevolent guiding hand to manage all
around us to the highest standards. The public will support this strategy if
it is put over clearly.
Attendance of the ISG Meeting, the Bovine TB meeting, and full involvement
in the proposed consultation, by rural vets and wildlife managers, become
critical in getting the public support in changing current academic thinking
and reversing many disastrous trends.
This will include as a priority, persuading the public that too many badgers
are very bad indeed for many other wonderful species, whose very existence
they threaten.
Above all we need to restore best practice in managing badger populations,
which means as far as possible killing them selectively and humanely using
specialists under licence.
We have the skills and capability to set a much better example in Britain,
than that in other countries where badger digging is licensed. This can be
delivered at low cost.
Kind regards,
Edmund Marriage - British Wildlife Management
www.britishwildlifemanagement.org
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Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)
This email and any attachments is intended for the named recipient only. If
you have received it in error you have no authority to use, disclose, store
or copy any of its contents and you should destroy it and inform the sender.
Whilst this email and associated attachments will have been checked for
known viruses whilst within Defra systems we can accept no responsibility
once it has left our systems.
Communications on Defra's computer systems may be monitored and/or recorded
to secure the effective operation of the system and for other lawful
purposes.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)
This email and any attachments is intended for the named recipient only. If
you have received it in error you have no authority to use, disclose, store
or copy any of its contents and you should destroy it and inform the sender.
Whilst this email and associated attachments will have been checked for
known viruses whilst within Defra systems we can accept no responsibility
once it has left our systems.
Communications on Defra's computer systems may be monitored and/or recorded
to secure the effective operation of the system and for other lawful
purposes.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)
This email and any attachments is intended for the named recipient only. If
you have received it in error you have no authority to use, disclose, store
or copy any of its contents and you should destroy it and inform the sender.
Whilst this email and associated attachments will have been checked for
known viruses whilst within Defra systems we can accept no responsibility
once it has left our systems.
Communications on Defra's computer systems may be monitored and/or recorded
to secure the effective operation of the system and for other lawful
purposes.