SPA GL confusion will put livelihoods at risk 

Salisbury Plain Special Protection Area (SPA) is amongst dozens of SPAs where shoots will be “highly unlikely” to receive an individual licence from Natural England to release gamebirds in 2025. 

 This news comes in the wake of the announcement that GL45, the general licence which in 2024 regulated gamebird release on or within 500m of the Salisbury Plain SPA, and 84 other SPAs has been withheld by Defra for 2025.

Natural England stated the reason for withholding GL45 was due to the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) risk level. Instead of GL45, shoots wishing to release gamebirds on or within 500m of an SPA will be required to apply to Natural England for an individual licence.

Ahead of 22 April, when Natural England will open for individual licence applications, they have published a bulletin which gives advanced notice of the likelihood of licence application success for shoots based on location. 

The bulletin splits SPAs into three groups. The first being SPAs where applications are likely to be successful with standard mitigation methods – this group features only one SPA: Falmouth Bay to St Austell Bay.

The second group, which features 17 SPAs, consists of those where applications are likely to be successful if releases are delayed until 1 September or 1 October.

The third group is for SPAs on which “gamebird release is highly unlikely to be permitted for the coming season unless there are exceptional circumstances that could reduce or avoid the risk of HPAI transmission”.  

Shooting campaign manager for Countryside Alliance, Roger Seddon said: “After several years of licensing tumult, this is the latest blow to shoots in or near SPAs. Natural England’s approach is putting jobs, livelihoods and family homes at great risk.”

BASC’s chief executive, Ian Bell, said: “The approach taken by Natural England risks jobs and will have a huge impact on rural economies, not to mention the conservation benefits that sustainable shooting delivers for species and habitats.

“While we recognise the need to manage the risk of avian influenza, the damage to the countryside could be irreparable. The government should commit to revisiting licensing decisions as the risk of AI dissipates.

“The fight we face over the coming months will be considerable and challenging. But our teams are prepared. BASC experts are already helping to build credible licence applications and will stand with our members across the country.”