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<p>Badgers removed under licence between 2013 and 2015 were not routinely tested for
TB.</p><p> </p><p>In 2013, four badgers removed were tested at the specific request
of landowners. The tests were carried out privately by independent veterinary surgeons
and one badger was confirmed to be infected with TB. This information is publicly
available: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/323530/RFI_6489.pdf"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/323530/RFI_6489.pdf</a>.</p><p>
</p><p>In 2016 we initiated development of a badger TB surveillance programme in nine
cull areas in the High Risk Area of England. A report on the results from tested badgers
is publicly available: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-surveillance-in-wildlife-in-england-2016-to-2017"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bovine-tb-surveillance-in-wildlife-in-england-2016-to-2017</a>.</p><p>
</p><p>In 2017, 84 badger carcasses from one cull area were submitted for TB testing
as part of a research project to develop and validate novel techniques for diagnosing
TB in badgers. A further nine carcasses from a different cull area were also submitted
for TB testing as part of a commercial collaboration. No results from these tests
are yet available.</p>
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