Big Issue calls for shoot ban

The Big Issue has encouraged a ban on pheasant shooting after running several full-page adverts paid for by Animal Aid. 

The advert appeared on the first page of a January edition of the magazine and encouraged readers to sign an online petition to “ban pheasant shooting” because it is “propped up by hundreds of thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money”. 

The Big Issue is a weekly magazine largely sold by street vendors who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, thus providing them with an opportunity to earn a legitimate income. 

Large quantities of game shot by the fieldsports community is funnelled to the homeless community and those suffering from food poverty through charities such as the Country Food Trust, which provides meals for thousands made from game meat. 

Sir Johnny Scott, president of the Gamekeepers’ Welfare Trust, said: “The Big Issue has long afforded a platform to animal charities like Animal Aid and IFAW. It’s a shame that Animal Aid is unable to see the good the shooting fraternity does and instead focuses on destroying a community that is a key part of British countryside life.”