Badger Vaccination Funding

A week or so back I read an article from Cheshire East on AOL informing us that the council had decided to give financial assistance to the badger vaccination campaign in Cheshire in order to assist the farming community, now that the badger cull had reduced the population to a reasonable number for the program to be effective.Whilst I have no problem with the vaccination campaign and welcome it, I do take the strongest issue with the use of council taxpayers' money to fund it, and especially so when we are in the midst of the Covid crisis and there is much financial suffering in certain areas of our community.

The last two weeks have seen the arrival in farmers accounts of the annual Basic Payment money which I regard as the Robin Hood Reverse payment. Fortunately, these substantial payments are due to be phased out over the next four years as we leave the EU and as the great majority of farmers voted Leave, it cannot come as any surprise to lose it. That is where the funding should be coming from if central government are not prepared to fund it themselves, not from the council tax.The Councillors of C.E. have a duty to spend our money where it will do most good for the people who really need it. In my book that does not include badger vaccination. But there again, judging by the oft repeated gross mis-spending scandals that have rocked the authority over the last fifteen years or so, Councillors probably regard it as small beer.

But If Cheshire East wanted to look for worthy causes upon which to spend our money, then I would suggest that they consider as priorities, foodbanks, pothole maintenance, gulley clearance, streetlight maintenance or even maintaining waste recycling centres which I notice are the latest service under threat, as far more preferable alternatives to that of badger vaccination.

It strikes me that the Woke Wave of Chris Packham, George Monbiot, Zak Goldsmith and Carrie Symmonds has swept over Cheshire East Councillors placing the cuddly badger syndrome above all other issues.
And while I'm about it, perhaps CE would take note of the emails I have sent in requesting the clearance of the Woore Road gulleys which have resulted in waves of dirty water rolling down Salford over the last six weeks, some of it contaminated with slurry from tanker washings.

Do we have to wait for a passing badger to drown in it? Twas ever thus.


Ps. Congratulations to the website team on the new format. Any chance you can assist the NHS with their IT problems?
Peter Morgan