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Badger Trust thanks supporters as badger baiting features in recent parliamentary committee debate

Badger lovers’ campaign work sees badger baiting included in the recent parliamentary committee debate for the Online Safety Bill.


Badger Trust recently submitted a submission to the Parliamentary Committee reviewing the Government’s proposed Online Safety Bill. The Bill, which seeks to protect internet users from harmful and illegal content online, had not included animal cruelty offences within the initial proposal despite the harm these crimes cause to animals, humans and the environment.


In the submission, Badger Trust called for the Bill to be amended to include crimes against animals. Badger Trust provided evidence of the rising instances of violent crimes against badgers (particularly badger baiting) being shared in online spaces, and the increasing number of young people at risk of witnessing and taking part in these cruel and illegal activities.


It is clear to Badger Trust, as the leading voice for badgers in England and Wales, that badger baiting is a form of cyber-enabled wildlife crime, with gangs using social media platforms to recruit members and organise badger baiting activities.


Badger Trust was therefore encouraged that the Committee debated including animal cruelty in the Online Safety Bill. Badger Trust’s recommendations have been cited along with briefings from the RSPCA and Primate Action, and Asia for Animals Coalition, amongst others, who also presented evidence for the case of including animal cruelty in the Bill.


The submission was built upon evidence gained through research conducted by Badger Trust into badger crimes appearing online and would not have been possible without Badger Trust supporters. Their donations to us and their letters and emails to MPs concerning cruelty to badgers have been pivotal in raising awareness of badger crime issues.


Speaking on the public’s support for more stringent animal protection legislation, one of the members of the Committee reviewing the Bill Alex Davies-Jones MP, Shadow Minister for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, explained:


“If my inbox is anything to go by, all of us here today know what so many of our constituents up and down the country feel about animal abuse. It is one of the most popular topics that constituents contact me about.

Today, the Minister has a choice to make about his Government’s commitment to preventing animal cruelty and keeping us all safe online. I hope he will see the merit in acknowledging the seriousness of animal abuse online.”


The MP also provided a summary of case studies of animal cruelty shared online, which included badger baiting. Badger Trust is pleased to see that badger baiting was highlighted as a serious issue.


Peter Hambly, Executive Director of Badger Trust, commented:


“There has been progress in recent years on animal welfare legislation and the Government clearly sees this as an important area, but more needs to be done particularly for wild animals. Badger Trust wants to see badgers and other wild animals treated the same way as domestic animals under the 2021 Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act.”


“We need increased sentencing to reflect the severity of the cruelty and to act as a deterrent. We would also like to see the explosion in online sharing of cruelty to badgers covered in the Online Safety Bill.”

“More protection is needed in this area to stop these images being shared. I also urge badger lovers to keep campaigning and making sure their MP knows how important this issue is to them – it really helps!”


The debate in Parliament concerning the need to include animal cruelty offences in the Online Safety Bill also highlighted a glaring inequality regarding animal protection legislation in the UK. Currently, criminals found guilty of badger baiting can receive up to five years in prison for injuries caused to the dog. However, the maximum prison sentence for the injury or death of a badger is six months under the Protection of Badgers Act (1992). Increasing sentencing would, by default, make a crime under the Protection of Badgers Act (1992) a notifiable offence. This would mean the real level of crime can be accurately assessed, reported on, and tackled. At present, wildlife crimes are not recorded in this way, and there is a lack of national statistics.


In speaking of the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act (2021), which gained Royal Assent last year, Committee member Alex Davies-Jones MP added:


“The maximum prison sentence for animal cruelty was increased from six months to five years, and the Government billed that move as them taking a firmer approach to cases such as dog fighting, abuse of puppies and kittens, illegally cropping a dog’s ears and gross neglect of farm animals.


“Why, then, have the Government failed to include offences against animals within the scope of illegal content online? We want parity between the online and offline space, and that seems like a sharp omission from the Bill.”

Whilst Badger Trust staunchly supports the need to include animal cruelty offences in the Online Safety Bill, the charity also calls for the sentencing in the Protection of Badgers Act (1992) to be updated to reflect the advances made in animal protection legislation in the UK. Badgers deserve to be recognised as sentient beings in need of maximum welfare protection in line with domestic animals. That’s why, alongside its campaigns and research into cyber-enabled badger crime, Badger Trust is calling on the Government to increase sentencing under the Protection of Badgers Act (1992) to bring it in line with the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021.


If the increasing awareness seen in the debate for the Online Safety Bill is anything to go by, supporters of Badger Trust’s PBA30 campaign are sure to continue making a difference for badger clans across Britain.


What you can do to Act for Badgers

You can join the PBA30 campaign and add your voice to our call for better protection for badgers. We’ve written to the Secretary of State, Rt Hon George Eustice to ask him to extend sentencing for badger crime. This would mean sentences for crimes such as badger baiting and shooting would present a real deterrent to badger abusers.

You can write to the Secretary of State and your MP too. The more letters they receive, the more chance we have of bringing about change, and as quickly as possible.



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