§ 16. Mr. Ben ChapmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on steps she has taken to combat cruelty to badgers, with specific reference to the protection of setts. [46526]
§ Mr. MorleyIt is an offence under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 to interfere with a badger sett without an appropriate licence. The maximum penalty for such an offence under the 1992 Act is a fine of £5,000 or six months' imprisonment, or both.
The protection provided under the 1992 Act, which is unique for an unendangered animals, reflects the concern which is felt by the Government about the gratuitous acts of cruelty to which badgers have been subjected to all too often in the past.
§ Mr. BreedTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimates have been made of how many badgers there were in each constituency in each of the last 20 years. [48548]
§ Mr. MorleyNo annual data on the number of badgers exist either at county, constituency or national level.
Based on two surveys the number of badgers in Great Britain is estimated to be between 300 and 400 thousand. The latest survey which was conducted in the mid-1990s revealed an increase in badgers numbers of around 70 per cent. compared with the first survey which was undertaken in the mid-1980s.