ANTI-BADGER cull campaigners have won the right to appeal a ruling regarding a government decision over this year’s culls.

In August, Justice Kenneth Parker dismissed an application by the Badger Trust, which called for this year’s culls to take place with independent monitoring.

Last year, an Independent Expert Panel was in place to oversee controlled shooting, nut Defra lawyers said this monitoring was only intended to run in the first year.

But yesterday, (September 10), Lord Justice Maurice Kay granted the Trust permission to appeal the High Court’s ruling.

He agreed with the Trust that its arguments on appeal had a real prospect of success.

Lord Justice Maurice Kay said it was unlikely that it would be possible to arrange the one-day hearing before the end of this year’s six-week cull.

But he added that this did not mean that if successful, the appeal would be pointless.

He said: “There will be implications arising out of that success say to the future developments of the policy.”

Jeff Hayden, the Badger Trust's lead on Judicial Challenges, said: "Once again, our persistence has paid off.

“We now have a further opportunity to ensure the culls have independent scientific oversight, as the Badger Trust understood was promised by the Secretary of State.

“We are encouraged by the fact that the Court found that there was merit in the appeal, despite the culls having started only days ago.

“It is the Badger Trust's position that any decision on further roll-out should be underscored by the appropriate involvement of an independent expert panel." D

uring this year’s culls which started on Monday, shooters will have to kill a maximum number of 785 badgers in Somerset.