A CUMBRIAN MP says she is disappointed the government is pushing ahead with the widening of its badger cull.

Sue Hayman – whose constituency includes towns such as Wigton and Aspatria – claimed the government was doing this against advice from its own independent experts and the British Veterinary Association.

Mrs Hayman’s remarks followed a landmark court battle last week by wildlife campaigners which, if successful, could see licences to shoot badgers in Cumbria quashed.

Supported by the Badger Trust, ecologist Tom Langton has challenged the lawfulness of Defra’s badger cull.

It follows the government’s decision to allow badger culling in the so-called Low Risk Area of England, including Cumbria, in the event that bovine TB is linked with infected herds.

Mrs Hayman, shadow secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs, said: “Bovine TB has a devastating impact on cattle herds and causes real hardship for farmers.

“That’s why it is so important to bring forward solutions that are proven to work, based on sound science.

“After years of culling, there is still no scientific evidence to demonstrate that it is effective in reducing bovine TB and helping farmers.

“Cattle are needlessly slaughtered due to poor testing. I await the result of the judicial review with interest.”

Cull opponents say the badger cull policy is failing farmers, taxpayers and wildlife, and will make the bovine TB epidemic worse.

The government announced last month that culling in a low-risk area will only be allowed in “exceptional circumstances”, and in “hotspots” identified by the Animal and Plant Health Agency.

The first cases of bovine TB in badgers in Cumbria were initially confirmed in August 2017.

Officials believe the disease spread from cattle brought from Northern Ireland into the wildlife.