HC Deb 22 April 1985 vol 77 cc328-9W
Mr. Kilroy-Silk

asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the number of badgers; and where they are located.

Mr. Waldegrave

Accurate figures are not available, but the Nature Conservancy Council calculates that the badger population of Great Britain is in the region of 400,000. Badgers are not common in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, on the higher mountains in Snowdonia or Brecon, in East Anglia, or in large built-up areas. They are widespread in other areas of Great Britain and are most common on the chalk hills of the south of England such as the Cotswolds and the north and south Downs.