Disappointment with assembly government 'Dragging its heals' attitude

The Welsh Assembly Government is moving too slowly in its endeavours to eradicate TB - that was the general consensus from opposition parties at today’s Environment, Planning and Countryside Committee meeting, as well as NFU Cymru leaders.

Carwyn Jones, Minister for Environment, Planning and Countryside, referring to the 12% incidence of TB in badgers across Wales revealed by the Badgers Found Dead survey, said this morning, “These results depended on how you looked at them and whilst they might look high to the farming industry, the RSPCA regarded them as low.”

Dai Davies, President of NFU Cymru, who was present for this morning’s meeting in Cardiff Bay, said, “If there was a contagious disease present in the human population at an average rate of 12% I cannot imagine that the Minister for Health would be relaxed about the situation and the general public would be demanding action.

“NFU Cymru is deeply disappointed that the genotyping work to correlate the incidence of disease in badgers to that in cattle will not be released until January 2007. This smacks at feet dragging and the timetable must be expedited.”

Dai Davies continued, “I cannot understand why wildlife organisations would be so laid back about the high level of disease in badgers in some areas of Wales and that there is not a similar determination to rid wildlife of the TB scourge and spare the suffering it causes.”