A GREAT many areas of evidence about the bovine tuberculosis epidemic have remained shamefully underplayed.

Two leading scientists, members of the team who conducted the biggest field trial ever mounted in Britain, attacked the misuse of their work by both the Westminster and Welsh governments. Badger culling, they pointed out at a Zoological Society of London debate, gives a small reduction in the proportion of cattle herds with TB inside the kill zone, but temporarily raises it outside. It breaks up the badgers' social structures, pushing them out of their territories, which means that they spread the disease to healthy populations, and to cattle. Even when carried out rigorously, culling does very little to help.

The Badger Trust welcomed this timely intervention in the current political shouting match on the subject, and is determined to widen the debate to include all relevant findings – both scientific and economic – and to set them in their proper context.

Unfortunately the National Farmers' Union and others have been trying to play politics to get their way and have badgers killed. In the past they had been able to use their political clout as home producers when the UK was desperate to avoid importing food.

Two governments are trying to get the badger cull lobby off their backs; English farmers could be given the right to shoot badgers at their own expense and in Wales the taxpayer could get a hefty twinge in the wallet – and all to make matters even worse.

Both administrations are flying in the face of the only science which, Westminster's consultation document itself says, is properly rigorous – the outcome of the £50 million Randomised Badger Culling Trials of 1998 – 2007 referred to above.

In either country any culling would have to be done simultaneously on a massive and sustained scale even to be marginally effective.

Sadly, the politicians have seen the NFU and its friends coming. They have even persuaded the English ones to pay for powder and shot to shoot themselves in the foot.

David Williams, Badger Trust.