Photograph by Sally Longstaff

Today, the government announced it plans to go ahead with two trials of shooting badgers.  This would be part of measures to reduce the spread of disease – bovine TB – between different herds of cattle.  Badgers can carry the disease and as a result many farmers are keen to reduce their numbers as they think it’s essential for controlling the disease. Caroline Spelman, the Environment Secretary, says she is “strongly minded” to back the shooting of badgers.

Killing badgers as a way of reducing infections in cattle herds has been tested before – but only on badgers that have been trapped first.  Evidence from these earlier trials showed that they could potentially reduce new cattle infections by up to 16%, though the government’s own scientists warn that if a cull is carried out badly it could make things worse.

Lord Krebs, formerly the government’s own expert on badgers, says these figures mean culling is a mistake as “you leave 85 per cent of the problem still there, and having gone to a huge amount of trouble to kill a huge number of badgers, it just doesn’t seem to me to be an effective way of dealing with the disease”.

But the government says that this potential reduction in cattle disease is enough to justify the shooting of thousands of badgers, and that the new trials will only test whether shooting badgers without trapping them kills enough badgers to be “effective” and whether the killing is “humane”.

But the government acknowledges that there is a risk that the trials could make things worse, as badgers who are disturbed roam more freely around the countryside, potentially spreading disease.  Professor Bob Watson, a Chief Scientific Advisor, says he thinks shooting badgers in the field won’t make this problem of “badger perturbation” worse, but acknowledges the new trials won’t collect any evidence to test it.

“We don’t know the answer, but there’s no reason to believe it would be worse… [but] that’s not evidence, it’s expert judgement.”

On our Facebook page, 38 Degrees members have been sharing our views:

Paula Carrier  Culling is not the way. It is proven to not to work, causes incredible suffering to the animals and is a knee-jerk reaction from the government. Inoculation is the way, not senseless slaughter.

Robert G Long Er… why don’t we leave this to the farmers? I don’t tell my mechanic how to fix my car or my plumber how to plumb! I blame kids’ tv & the personification of animals!

Vanessa Garrett Why do so many people care about badgers being culled but don’t care a jot about the number of cows being culled.

Jo Unwin If the effectiveness of culling is projected to be between 12 and 15% there seems little point especially as the previous culling trials showed that the wandering of survivors increased the incidence of tuberculosis. If scientific research does not support culling of badgers to reduce TB, why do it?

What do you think?

• Is it worth the government going ahead with trials of shooting badgers in the field?

• What do you think of the alternatives – restoring scrapped trials of badger vaccination?  Focus on better ways of looking after and transporting cattle?  Keep paying farmers compensation while a cow vaccine is developed as soon as possible?

• Is it simply wrong to kill badgers in any circumstances or can it sometimes be justified?

• Have you seen any good links to more information, useful articles, or analysis you can post below?

Update:
Here’s a video from Channel 4 news – At 3.03mins, Oxford academic and zoologist Lord John Krebs comments on the plans – “I can’t understand how anybody who’s looked at the science would say this is a good idea.”

Update 2:
Lord Krebbs was on Today on Radio 4 talking about the badger cull. Listen to the cliphere: http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_9544000/9544096.stm

Photograph by 38 Degrees

What a week in the world of UK carbon targets. With a crucial decision on climate change looming, thousands of us contacted our MPs. We asked them to urge David Cameron to listen to his expert scientific advice and keep his green promises. Good news, that message has got though.

On Tuesday, climate minister Chris Huhne announced that the government will accept the recommendations of the Committee on Climate Change. It’s not perfect, the government have given themselves a little bit of wiggle room in the form of a 2014 review, but it still represents a victory for people power.

So what was all the fuss about? Here’s a quick recap on the events to date:

• The 2008 Climate Change Act was a world leading piece of legislation committing the UK to serious action on climate change
• David Cameron was vocal in his support of the then Climate Change Bill as it made its way through parliament. He even sleighed through the arctic to highlight his concern for the effects of climate change
• Then days after coming to power last May, the prime minister promised he’d lead the “Greenest Government Ever”
• Earlier this year, the Committee on Climate Change, a body set up to help implement provisions of the Climate Change Act, issued its latest set of recommendations in their Fourth Carbon Budget. This included key emissions targets for the period 2023 to 2027
• Treasury insiders (and Vince Cable) have in the past weeks furiously lobbied David Cameron to reject these targets
• The prime minister makes the big decision this week

38 Degrees members have asked David Cameron to keep his green promises and accept the recommendations. If, as now predicted, the government backs the Committee on Climate Change, it represents an important  victory for people power. Once again 38 Degrees members have had our voices heard.

And we weren’t alone in making this call. A chorus of support for the CCC rose over the past week. Greenpeace brought their Huskies to parliament on Friday (click for cute dog pics) and some of the UK’s biggest NGOs, from the RSPB to Friends of the Earth to Christian Aid, have written to the prime minister telling him he needs to get to work if he’s to keep all those green promises.

While David Cameron has promised the “Greenest Government ever”, we have seen the priorities of many of his cabinet colleagues lie elsewhere. A victory here, but as 38 Degrees members, we know the need for our close inspection of environment decisions remains.

Photograph by DECC

Less than a week into office David Cameron promised he would lead the “greenest government ever”. Now it looks like the prime minister is about to break a crucial commitment on climate change.

The crunch decision is expected next week. If it goes the wrong way, it could set back the fight against climate change for years to come. We need to move fast to stop that happening.

The press reports that the government is “deeply divided” on whether to tackle climate change. The UK’s chief climate adviser has described next week’s decision as “the key test” of the government’s commitment to being green.

Cameron has always promised to follow the advice of his scientists. But Treasury hardliners are pushing him to ignore the advice. [1] They want watered-down targets, cuts in green jobs, and a boost for the dirtiest industries.

David Cameron wants to be seen as a prime minister who keeps promises and cares about the environment. That gives us an opportunity to influence him. We need to ensure David Cameron is hearing from every single MP, all telling him the public won’t stand for broken green promises.

Please contact your MP urgently. Tell them to write to the prime minister, demanding he keeps his climate change promises.

By working together to put pressure on our MPs, we can make David Cameron realise that breaking promises on climate change would ruin his reputation. This is a man who posed in the Arctic with huskies, and promised to run the “greenest government ever”. If we speak out now, we can send a clear message: you can’t get away with talking green and acting dirty.

Tens of thousands of 38 Degrees members are working together to push this government to keep its green promises. Together, we stopped them selling off the forests, protecting them for wildlife and future generations. Nearly 50,000 of us have now signed the petition to keep the laws which protect our countryside and our wildlife. Now let’s work together to stop this urgent threat to the UK taking action on climate change.

The clock is ticking. A decision is expected early next week. We know that the hardliners will be using that time to put as much pressure on Cameron as they can. If enough of us contact our MPs, we can drown them out with people power.

Please email your MP urgently and ask them to contact David Cameron as soon as possible.

NOTES
[1] The really important recommendations are:

• A Domestic Action fourth carbon budget of 1950 MtCO2e
• An indicative 2030 target to reduce emissions by 60% relative to 1990 levels (46% relative to 2009 levels)
• An adjustment of the second and third budgets to reflect the level of ambition in the intended budget for the non-traded sector, giving an economy-wide reduction of 37% in 2020 relative to 1990

The full report is available from the Committee on Climate Change website.

Photograph by Alexander Olm

Nearly 40,000 of us have now signed the petition against government plans to scrap key protections for wildlife, the environment and the countryside.

Pressure on the government is building fast: It’s only two weeks since the Guardian newspaper first revealed this new threat to wildlife and the environment. As well as our big people-powered petition, more and more respected organisations are speaking out– including the RSPB, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace.

Let’s keep the pressure building. Can you help get the petition to 50,000 this weekend by asking your friends to sign?

Photograph by Alexander Olm

On Monday, The Guardian newspaper revealed that the government might scrap vital laws which protect wildlife and the countryside and help stop climate change. 278 regulations designed to protect wildlife, tackle pollution, protect the countryside, and reduce climate change have been branded ‘red tape’ by a new government consultation, “The Red Tape Challenge”.

The government says it wants to “free up business and society from the burden of excessive regulation”. But included in the list of regulations under review are very important laws such as the UK Climate Change Act, National Parks Act, Clean Air Act and the Wildlife and Countryside Act. These aren’t little-known laws that no one cares about. The Wildlife and Countryside Act protects wild birds, their nests and eggs, and makes sure that national parks and marine reserves are protected. The UK’s Climate Change Act was a world first which helps make sure we reduce our emissions.

The Red Tape Challenge website makes it clear that if we want to protect these laws, we need to speak out:

“Once you’ve had your say, Ministers will have three months to work out which regulations they want to keep and why. But here’s the most important bit – the default presumption will be that burdensome regulations will go. If Ministers want to keep them, they have to make a very good case for them to stay.”

John Sauven, Director of Greenpeace, has said of these proposals:

“David Cameron needs to come out and say the Climate Change Act, central to the push for a clean technology revolution, is safe from the axe. But if ministers are serious about scrapping it and other vital environmental regulations then we’ll be looking at something akin to the worst excesses of the Bush-Cheney White House.”

 

Friends of the Earth commented:

“News in today’s Guardian that all of the UK’s environment law is going to be reviewed is extremely alarming”

In the past, David Cameron has made headlines promising to run “the greenest government ever”. We need to convince him that scrapping these laws would be a disaster for his reputation. A huge petition will prove to Cameron that he can’t afford to break his green promises.

We know that when we work together we can make sure the government doesn’t get away with plans which could hurt the environment. When they decided to try to sell off our forests, over half a million of us got together and convinced them to drop their plans.

The government says it wants to hear what we think before scrapping these laws – so let’s give them a consultation response they can’t ignore! Please help make sure we have a huge petition telling the government to keep laws which protect our wildlife and our environment.

Photograph by Bruno D Rodrigues

David Cameron is on the brink of breaking his climate change promises. He’s under pressure from the Treasury to block bold new emissions targets that have been recommended by the government’s own climate change experts. We can’t let this happen. We need to tell him that we want him to keep his promise to lead “the greenest government ever.” Email David Cameron from this link: http://www.38degrees.org.uk/action-on-climate-change

Here’s the text of an email we just sent out about this issue:

Dear friend,

David Cameron has always promised to tackle climate change, but it looks like he might be on the brink of ditching that promise. We need to move fast to stop that happening.

Government climate change experts are recommending bold but realistic new targets. But hardliners in the Treasury are trying to block their progress. [1] It’s being reported that the government is “deeply divided” on what to do next. [2] If we act now, we can make sure the decision goes the right way.

The next two weeks are vital. If Cameron and Clegg are hearing from thousands of us, they’ll know that breaking their promises on climate change would mean uproar.

Click here send a message to David Cameron and Nick Clegg: http://www.38degrees.org.uk/action-on-climate-change

Last year Cameron promised to tackle climate change, saying he wanted to lead “the greenest government ever”. [3] It would be a disaster if this promise was broken. If we water down our targets, we won’t bring down emissions fast enough to stop dangerous climate change. And if we’re watering down our own targets, how can we ever hope to persuade the rest of the world to take action?

It was people power that pushed the last government to agree to set targets to tackle climate change in the first place. [4] It was people power that pushed Cameron and Clegg to promise to make climate change a priority. Now people power can persuade Cameron and Clegg to keep their climate promise.

Email Cameron and Clegg now telling them to accept the expert advice:
http://www.38degrees.org.uk/action-on-climate-change

38 Degrees members have a great history of pushing the government to do better on the environment. Back in 2009, thousands of us phoned the then Climate Minister Ed Miliband just before he left for international climate talks. Last month, half a million of us helped stop government plans to sell off our forests. Just two weeks ago, tens of thousands of us voted to keep climate change a priority campaign for 38 Degrees. So now, let’s keep up the pressure and make sure Clegg and Cameron know they can’t water down our climate targets.

http://www.38degrees.org.uk/action-on-climate-change

Thanks for getting involved,

Johnny, Hannah, David and the 38 Degrees team

Notes:
[1] The really important recommendations are
- A domestic action fourth carbon budget of 1950 MtCO2e
- An indicative 2030 target to reduce emissions by 60% relative to 1990 levels (46% relative to 2009 levels)
- An adjustment of the second and third budgets to reflect the level of ambition in the intended budget for the non-traded sector, giving an economy-wide reduction of 37% in 2020 relative to 1990.
The full report can be seen here: http://www.theccc.org.uk/reports/fourth-carbon-budget

[2] The Guardian reports: “The news comes ahead of a crucial cabinet discussion of the UK’s climate change targets beyond 2020. There are still deep divisions between the Department of Energy and Climate Change, which is calling for tough targets to stimulate green growth, and the Treasury and the Department of Business, which argue that the current economic situation calls for less stringent targets in 10 years’ time.” http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/mar/29/uk-global-green-investment-rankings

[3] http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/may/14/cameron-wants-greenest-government-ever

[4] http://www.foe.co.uk/news/climate_law_world_first_16014.html

Photograph by 38 Degrees

The campaign to stop the sell off of England’s forests is going really well with over  half-a-million people have signed the petition . As well as members of the public, the campaign has also received support from some unlikely sources. David Sulman-the Chief Executive of the UK Forest Product Association, who look after the technical and commercial interest of British-grown timber processors- has writtedn a blog post about why he thinks England’s forests should remain in public ownershup.

England’s publicly owned woodlands and forests, which are sustainably managed to internationally recognised Standards, are a unique national natural resource, that provide valuable economic, social and environmental benefits for us all.

Not only do our forests and woodlands give us many leisure and recreation opportunities and enhance biodiversity, but they support thousands of jobs in the rural economy too. The commercial timber crops provide the raw material for Great Britain’s wood processing industry – sawmills and panelboard plants – which produce products for many markets and uses. Some people continue to be critical of conifers, such as Spruce and Pine; but they forget the benefits that they provide for us all. The face of forestry has changed over the years to reflect these concerns and we need to ensure that we have the right trees, in the right places, at the right time.

Our forests and the timber products sourced from them help to tackle climate change too: trees absorb carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, as they grow, locking it in the wood, where it remains for as long as the wood is used as a product. Climate change experts agree that we urgently need to be planting more trees and using more wood products, in place of energy intensive materials. Furthermore, wood sourced from our forests reduces our demand for imported wood.

The Forestry Commission consistently brings wood to the market on a sustainable basis and offers the opportunity for businesses to buy, in an open and transparent way, whereas wood supply from the many and diverse private sector growers can be less reliable and sporadic. Businesses need continuity of wood supply if they are to have confidence to continue to invest for the future. The Forestry Commission earns significant income from its commercial timber operations; typically about £25 million per year, which helps to offset the costs of providing the many other public benefits that we all appreciate.

We believe that the Government’s proposals are a ‘recipe for disaster’; there is no compelling case for these fundamentally flawed plans, which if implemented, will be regretted by generations to come. England’s publicly owned woodlands and forests must remain in public ownership, so that we can all continue to enjoy the many benefits they provide.

The government launched its “consultation” today on how to privatise England’s forests. Here are a few first thoughts:

Photograph by Ivan Dervisevic

- The Public Bodies Bill is currently in the House of Lords and its current wording gives the government powers to sell off up to 100% of the English forests without any further involvement from Parliament.

- Even if this government is stopped from selling-off the forests this time, the Bill would allow any future government to do it at any time. Can we really trust every government in coming years to keep that promise?

The fact that the government is now going into spin overdrive, offering warm words, spin, and a few genuine concessions, shows that our campaign is beginning to work.

- So that proves we need to keep going – if even more of us get involved, we can win!

- The more of us that get involved in the campaign, the better the chances that we keep our precious forests safe for future generations.

Photograph by Chalkie_CC (Flickr)

- It’s good news that it looks like the government has made the concession of saying a small amount of the Public Forest Estate will at least not be sold off to private owners. But the reason so many of us have got involved in this campaign is because having 600,000 acres of publicly owned woodland all across England is a precious thing – we want to see all of that protected, not just a few famous sites while the rest is sold off.

- The best way to protect all our forests is to keep them in public hands — that’s why we will keep campaigning.

The public wants our forests kept in public hands for future generations – yet the government is only asking for our views on how to privatise it.

- The opinion poll last weekend, which 38 Degrees members clubbed together to pay for, showed that 84% of the public want the forest kept in public hands – so why isn’t the government offering this as an option?

- 1/4 million people from all around the UK have signed a petition against the forests being sold off.

- The government is pushing through changes to the law to enable privatisation, and has already embarked on selling off 15% of our woods.

If you haven’t yet passed on the petition to your friends and family, please help to spread the word and be part of the campaign to save our forests. Together, we’re going to keep the pressure up with rallies, letters to MPs, adverts and local meetings until the government abandons their plans and agree to keep our forests safe in public ownership.

Please share your comments/ideas below.