please share this post so we can get maximum number of people emailing their MP to put an end to free shooting more background: badger-killers.co.uk/help/ you can find your MP here: parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/mps/ Dear I am sure you are already well aware that the badger cull “free shooting” method failed last year to be either humane or effective, it may not surprise you to learn that it was also unsafe and frequently criminal. The number of badgers that were only wounded and took over 5 minutes to die was as high as 18%. Many of those wounded badgers would then flee the bait points, those bait points were legally the only place that night vision scopes could be used to shoot badgers, I refer you to the Defra shooting guidelines point 29 that states: Image intensifying (‘night sights’) or infra-red sighting devices used as sights on a rifle (Night Vision equipment) are prohibited under the ‘81 Act but may be licensed by Natural England if certain conditions are met. These include: • Night Vision must be used over a fixed bait station, which is known to be a safe, secure shooting location. I must ask how it can be safe to shoot wounded badgers away from bait points with a rifle fitted with Night Vision? surely it cannot be as no one knows where that badger is going to run too and the Night Vision only offers a small field of view, the exact reason why it isn’t permitted. Indeed it is illegal to use and contravenes the 1981 wildlife act, the cull licence allows it, but according to strict rules, those rules are not being enforced and are even more worryingly being documented by Natural England with apparently no prosecutions. On the 17th of September a report from a Natural England monitor states: Free range shooting with night vision would have occurred had we not told them it was against best practice. And Contractor seemed unaware that he could not take shots using night vision when free range shooting This cannot be acceptable when the cull was on that date going into its third week. Furthermore I would like to take this opportunity to raise with you the issue of cage trapping, The cull was always sold to the general public as being paid for by farmers, indeed the Defra document dated April 2014 “The Strategy for achieving Officially Bovine Tuberculosis Free status for England” Makes reference to this very point on page 69 under “Privately-funded areas” column it says: “Deployment of badger culling licensed by Natural England” Why then on the 1st of May do Defra in an FOI on the cost of cage traps for the badger cull does it say: “Defra was responsible for purchasing cages but is withholding the cost of the cages under regulation 12 (5)(e), protection of economic interests. Defra is likely to procure cage traps this year and the release of cage costs would affect the tender process” ? I am horrified to learn that tax payers money has been siphoned off like this and would like an explanation and if Defra has bought all the cages what possible reason can the continuation of the method of free shooting be? not costs as the farmers are getting the cages for free, paid for by me! I believe now is the time for all MP’s to speak out against the badger cull and specifically the inhumane, ineffective, unsafe and frequently illegal method “free shooting” can you assure me that you will speak out at the earliest opportunity and investigate these concerns further? Yours Sincerely
Posted on: Wed, 11 Jun 2014 19:02:36 +0000
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