More than 4,100 Northamptonshire badgers killed as England's badger cull comes to an end

Final figures released by the Government show that 4,166 badgers have been killed across Northamptonshire since badger culling began in the county in 2022.

The figures form part of the final national totals, which reveal that 254,038 badgers have been killed across England over the past 13 years, bringing licensed badger culling to an end.

The latest national figures also show:

• 6,158 badgers were killed during the final culling season.

• 77% of badgers were killed by free shooting.

• Minimum cull targets were reduced by 19% following revisions to badger population estimates.

• In 9.5% of cull areas, the minimum target was not reached.

Northamptonshire Badger Group believes the publication of the final figures should prompt serious reflection on the effectiveness of the policy and what it has meant for both wildlife and farmers. While some studies have reported reductions in bovine TB where culling formed part of a wider package of controls, none has been able to separate the effects of badger culling from strengthened cattle testing, movement controls, biosecurity and other disease-control measures introduced at the same time.

Northamptonshire's badger cull began in 2022, at a time when bovine TB incidence was already falling. Although there was an initial reduction in new herd incidents, they increased again in 2024. As with the national picture, the available evidence cannot separate any effect of badger culling from the other disease-control measures introduced alongside it.

Whole genome sequencing studies have shown that around 95% of bovine TB transmission is cattle-to-cattle, with the remaining 5% involving all other transmission routes combined, including all wildlife, contaminated environments, slurry spreading and other potential sources, even earthworms!

Large parts of the Northamptonshire cull zone contained little or no cattle, raising serious questions about the rationale for killing badgers in those areas. More than 4,166 badgers have now been killed in the county, representing a devastating loss of a protected native species. The scale of the killing of a protected native species is shocking, particularly when national bovine TB levels remain broadly similar to those seen a decade ago despite more than 254,000 badgers being killed across England.

The Badger Trust said: "The publication of the final figures marks the end of one of the largest government-led wildlife control programmes involving a protected native species in Britain. More than 254,000 badgers have now been killed, yet the Government still cannot say how many were infected with Mycobacterium bovis or what difference killing them made to controlling bovine TB in cattle.

"Throughout this time, local badger groups have volunteered to be the voice for badgers across their counties, protecting setts, responding to wildlife crime, rescuing injured animals and speaking up for badgers in their local communities.

"It is time to stop the badger blame game and focus on evidence-led measures that tackle this disease where it has the greatest impact – in cattle."

The Badger Trust will continue analysing the figures over the coming weeks, but its initial assessment highlights continuing questions over the effectiveness of badger culling, the lack of routine testing of culled badgers, and the absence of a national assessment of the impact on England's badger population.