MPs debate the badger cull
13 March 2014
On Thursday 13 March, MPs took part in a debate on a motion relating to the badger cull. This debate was scheduled by the Backbench Business Committee following representations led by Mrs Anne Main.
Watch the debate and read the transcript
The debate was led by Anne Main.
- Watch Parliament TV: MPs debate the badger cull 13 March 2014
- Read Commons Hansard: MPs debate the badger cull
Text of the Motion for debate
"That this House believes that the pilot badger culls in Gloucestershire and Somerset have decisively failed against the criteria set out by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in guidance to Natural England for licensing of the culls, which stipulated that 70 per cent of the badger population should be culled within a six-week period; notes that the costs of policing, additional implementation and monitoring, and the resort to more expensive cage-and-trap methods over an extended period have substantially increased the cost of the culls, and strengthened the financial case for vaccination; regrets that the decision to extend the original culls has not been subject to any debate or vote in Parliament; further regrets that the Independent Expert Panel will only assess the humaneness, safety and effectiveness of the original six-week period and not the extended cull period; and urges the Government to halt the existing culls and granting of any further licences, pending development of alternative strategies to eradicate bovine TB and promote a healthy badger population."
House of Commons Library analysis
The House of Commons Library produces briefing papers to inform MPs of key issues. The papers contain factual information and a range of opinions on each subject, and aim to be politically impartial.
- Badger Culling: TB Control Policy - Commons Library Standard Note
- TB Vaccination in Badgers and Cattle - Commons Library Standard Note
How the subject was selected
The subject for this debate was determined by the Backbench Business Committee following representations from Anne Main, Caroline Lucas, Adrian Sanders, Angela Smith, and Barry Sheerman at the public meeting on Tuesday 4 February 2014.
- Parliament TV: Backbench Business Committee on 4 February 2014
- Transcript of oral evidence heard on 4 February 2014
Backbench Business Committee
The Backbench Business Committee meets weekly on Tuesdays at 3pm to consider requests for debates from any backbench Members of Parliament on any subject, including those raised in e-petitions or national campaigns.
An MP must make a representation before the Committee for an e-petition or petition to be debated; e-petitions exceeding the Government's 100,000 signature threshold are not automatically allocated backbench time.
The Committee then has to decide how to allocate the limited Parliamentary time it has at its disposal. The Committee's meetings are always conducted in public and can be watched on Parliament TV.