Debate on a petition on bovine TB control and badger culling
A debate has been scheduled in Westminster Hall on 13 October on an e-petition on bovine TB control and badger culling. The debate will be opened by Irene Campbell MP.
An e-petition calling on the government to end badger culling and to adopt other approaches to bovine tuberculosis control (700317) will be debated on 13 October 2025. The debate will be held in Westminster Hall and opened by Irene Campbell MP (Labour).
The petition closed on 28 May 2025 and received 102,459 signatures. It calls for the immediate end to the badger cull and the implementation of cattle focused measures to control bovine tuberculosis (bTB). In particular the petition questions to the evidence for badger culling effectiveness:
“Some research has suggested culling results in a reduction in bovine TB (bTB) in cattle. However, there are concerns about the methodology used. Other research, which has been peer reviewed and published, shows no evidence that culling badgers reduces confirmed bTB in cattle. Over 230,000 badgers — many healthy — have been killed, disrupting ecosystems without solid scientific justification.”
The government responded to the petition on 10 January 2025 and said that it had started work on a “comprehensive new strategy to continue to drive down bTB to save cattle and farmers’ livelihoods and end the badger cull by the end of this parliament.” It highlighted that a key part of the strategy was the ongoing development of a cattle vaccine against bovine TB. The government also noted that it would honour existing cull processes for farmers, to help ensure “clarity”.
Bovine TB is a respiratory disease, caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis (M.bovis) in cattle. This is closely related to the bacterium that causes human and avian tuberculosis. The government has stated that transmission can occur between animals through nose-to-nose contact and through contact with saliva, urine, faeces and milk. Humans can become infected with M.bovis but it is rare.1 Cattle can become infected when directly exposed to infectious cattle or other infectious animals and their urine or faeces.2
Bovine TB is considered a serious animal health problem in England. Over the past decade 278,000 cattle who tested positive for the disease have been compulsorily slaughtered and over 230,000 badgers have been culled in efforts by the government and farmers to control the disease.3
For further information see government guidance, Bovine TB: how to spot and report the disease, October 2021.
As bovine TB control is a devolved area, the information in this briefing applies to England only.
Footnotes