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| Badgers 'moved goalposts' says minister Owen Paterson | Badgers 'moved goalposts' says minister Owen Paterson |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A government minster said "badgers moved the goalposts" when asked why marksmen failed to reach a cull target. | A government minster said "badgers moved the goalposts" when asked why marksmen failed to reach a cull target. |
| A pilot badger cull in west Somerset may be extended by up to three weeks in an effort to make up the shortfall. | A pilot badger cull in west Somerset may be extended by up to three weeks in an effort to make up the shortfall. |
| Environment Secretary Owen Paterson was asked if he had "moved the goalposts" by claiming the cull was a success. | Environment Secretary Owen Paterson was asked if he had "moved the goalposts" by claiming the cull was a success. |
| "The badgers moved the goalposts. We're dealing with a wild animal, subject to the vagaries of the weather and disease and breeding patterns," he replied. | |
| The pilot culls in Gloucestershire and Somerset set out to study if badgers could be killed safely, effectively and humanely. | |
| It is being carried out in an attempt to control TB in cattle, which can be spread by badgers. Opponents say it will have no impact. | |
| 'Reduction in disease' | |
| The plan was to kill 70% of badgers in the areas of west Somerset and Gloucestershire by free shooting. | |
| Across both regions this meant around 5,000 badgers were to be killed in total. | |
| But Defra sources said these targets were based on population estimates from 2012 that have proved to be highly inaccurate. | |
| In west Somerset, the population, which had been estimated at 2,400, has now been revised downwards to 1,450. In Gloucestershire, the numbers have been lowered from 3,400 to 2,350. | |
| Mr Paterson told BBC Spotlight that marksmen had killed 60% of the current numbers of badgers in Somerset. | |
| "Our chief vet thinks that will lead to a significant reduction in disease," he said. | |
| "There's no question the cull in Somerset has been a success." | |
| He said extending the pilots would achieve the government's target. | |
| "It is a notorious TB hotspot so it is sensible to remove as many as possible," he said. |