JUST two votes scuppered a bid to help fund a Forest project to vaccinate badgers against bovine tuberculosis.

Forest councillors went against a recommendation from one of its scrutiny committees in deciding not to sanction the £5,000 grant.

At its meeting last Thursday the Forest Council voted 20-18 with five abstentions not to approve the grant.

A petition with 800 signatures calling on the council to support the project was presented to councillors in October and they agreed that the community scrutiny committee should make a recommendation after taking evidence.

The project would see trained volunteers giving vaccines to badgers on land where farmers agreed and has been supported by the borough and district councils in Cheltenham and Stroud.

Deputy leader of the council, Cllr Brian Robinson (Con, Mitcheldean and Drybrook) said he was 'surprised' by the committee's recommendation.

He said: "It seemed clear to me that the programme of vaccination in Gloucestershire was not going to be effective because the level of TB and the level of the badger population made it very difficult for a vaccination programme to be implemented, unless it was part of a process of removing diseased animals first.

"We have not seen any clarity that if we did make this award we would have any way of checking that the funds were applied would have any meaningful outcome either for the badgers or for the farmers."

Cllr Di Martin (Lab, Cinderford East) said she supported the "very positive community initiative."

She added: "This isn't a panacea but it is a community initiative by trained volunteers to help solve the problem.

"It's a small way forward and is asking for a small contribution to start a scheme matched funding with farmers who wish to do it."

Council leader Cllr Patrick Molyneux (Con, Hewelsfield and Woolaston) said the case for giving the grant "had not been made" to the scrutiny committee.

He added: "This is just a gesture – if it cost £10 million but worked Defra (the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) would be doing it. If it cost £5,000 and worked the farmers would."

Independent councillor Ian Whitburn said: "The indiscriminate culling of badgers has not worked.

"This is a very small amount of money but the more councils that do this will put pressure on government to do something long term."