article: Prof Rosie Woodroffe has told BBC News that ministers were creating an "illusion" of success to justify the policy. She was speaking ahead of a scientific symposium on controlling cattle TB. Ministers say their approach is supported by government scientists and leading vets. Prof Woodroffe, a wildlife expert at the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) who carried out the scientific assessment of culling badgers to control Cattle TB on which the current policy is based, said the government risked losing trust on how it used evidence - not just on its policy on controlling cattle TB but also on other important scientific issues. "When evidence is being cherry-picked and presented in the best possible light, it ceases to be evidence. It is fake science. "When it comes to (other policy areas) such as climate change and bee pollination, issues that have a big impact on lives and livelihoods of people, it is important that we can rely on the government to provide good evidence that stands up to scrutiny." A spokesman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), which oversees the badger cull, responded: "England has the highest incidence of TB in Europe and that is why we are taking strong action to deliver our 25-year strategy to eradicate the disease and to protect the future of our dairy and beef industries. "Badger control in areas where TB is rife is one part of our long-term plan, which also includes strengthening cattle testing and movement controls, improving biosecurity on farm and when trading, and badger vaccination when possible." Read also: Badger culls extended to Wales to stem spread of cattle TB Defra has overseen the issuing of licences to cull badgers in 10 areas in South West England to reduce the incidence of TB in cattle. The first culls began in 2013 in two areas in Somerset and Gloucestershire amid criticism from many scientists that the policy would at best have only a marginal effect on the spread of the disease and possibly increase the spread of TB. The critics' comments stem from an eight-year trial carried out by Prof Woodroffe in the 1990s which showed that only sustained and coordinated culling of badgers can slow down the rate of increase in cattle becoming infected with TB in the immediate area. Crucially, the trial also showed that if less than 70% of badgers are killed, the incidence of TB will not be reduced and may even increase because of the greater movement of badgers caused by the disturbance of culling. Since then Defra's own monitoring has concluded that it has killed enough badgers in its pilot culls and has rolled out culls in eight more areas. The department will also announce up 10 more areas later this year. But some scientists are concerned that Defra has changed the way it assesses badger numbers in a cull area and how it sets the target for the minimum number of badgers to be killed to ensure that its culls are seen to be successful. The previous system involved field work by
summary: A senior researcher has accused the UK government of using "fake science" to justify its policy of culling badgers to control cattle TB.