SIR — As a local MP and someone who has lived in Somerset all my life, I know that Bovine TB is one of the biggest issues affecting our local farming community.

Meeting dairy and cattle farmers over the years, I've seen both the financial and emotional devastation a TB outbreak can cause.

Farms shut down for months at a time and just last year alone over 28,000 TB infected cattle faced slaughter.

Everyone as a taxpayer will feel the effect of the disease to the tune of nearly £100m per year. If we do nothing to control it, it's estimated it'll cost us £1 billion over the next decade.

We are committed to tackling this prolific disease and we will use every tool in the box to do so.

Here in Somerset and across the country, cattle are tested for TB every 12 months and moving restrictions are placed on infected farms to help prevent further spread of the disease.

Over the next three years the Government will invest over £10 million into the development of badger and cattle vaccines.

Unfortunately catching, trapping and injecting the entire badger population, not just once but every year, is not a practical solution and it'll be some years before a suitable oral vaccine is available. And of course, vaccination does nothing for the badgers that are already infected.

Based on scientific evidence, another part of our efforts to combat TB is a planned six-week pilot badger cull in Somerset and Gloucestershire.

June 1 marked the start of the open season when culling can begin, but it will be down to the companies carrying out the cull to decide when conditions are right to proceed. Undoubtedly this will mean a lot of attention will be focused on our county this summer and the decision to cull will be under close scrutiny.

Let's be clear - no other country in the world has successfully combated TB without addressing it in both cattle and wildlife.

Culling takes place in France, Spain and many other countries around the world. Our Irish neighbours have been culling badgers for years with the result that cattle TB has reduced.

Wild buffalo and boar were culled in Australia and they too have now eradicated TB.

The issue of public safety during this cull is a concern for some.

People should be reassured that those carrying out the task are professionals with a valid firearms licence. They must also pass a strict, Government-approved training course where safety is a priority.

We must also remember that culling wildlife, like deer and wild boar, happens routinely in the countryside without incident and there is no reason why people cannot continue to enjoy the countryside as normal.

Nobody wants to cull badgers but we know that doing so can reduce the spread of TB in cattle.

What I want to see is a healthy badger population alongside healthy cattle.

Each day, our farmers live with the constant fear that their herds will test positive for this devastating disease and I cannot stand by and watch it spread throughout the countryside. We must do all we can to get a grip on TB.

David Heath MP,

Farming Minister,

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.