Today lawyers acting on behalf of Wild Justice have written to DEFRA challenging the legality of releases of gamebirds on Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) sites and Special Protection Areas (SPAs). Wild Justice says that in September 2019 DEFRA admitted that gamebird releases needed to be assessed properly and “promised…
News
Love Island contestant attracts anti-hunting criticism
Love Island contestant Ollie Williams posted images of himself on social media with game shot during a past trip to Africa and has been criticised for trophy hunting. A petition has been put up on Change.org calling for his removal from the ITV 2 series and attracted over 35,000 signatures.…
Packham ‘a threat to our livelihoods’
Rural workers have rallied in Perth to protest, claiming that TV presenter Chris Packham threatens rural livehoods. The protest came as Mr Packham gave a talk on nature photography at Perth Concert Hall. Mr Packham has used his media profile to promote two petitions to end grouse shooting, as well…
Reactions to the Werritty report on grouse shooting in Scotland
The newly published Werritty report on grouse shooting in Scotland states that licensing should be introduced if there is no marked improvement in the ecological suitability of grouse management within the next five years. However Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has hinted that licensing could be imposed sooner than the five year…
Cancelling the shooting show cost Liverpool city £5 million
Cancelling the British Shooting Show Liverpool cost the city £5 million, according to an email obtained by Shooting Times. The show was cancelled in October after the intervention of city mayor Joe Anderson. The Great British Shooting Show had been the subject of a petition that inaccurately claimed it would…
Revive report finds against Scotland’s grouse moors
Revive was launched in November 2018 with the aim of “working for grouse moor reform in Scotland.” The coalition’s new report entitled: “A Better Way: How an alternative to grouse moors could help tackle climate change, increase biodiversity and benefit Scotland’s people” concludes that grouse moors have caused significant ecological damage…
Sabs could face criminal charges for trespass in future
Hunt saboteurs have complained that the latest rules proposed by the Tory manifesto will make sabotaging hunts “almost impossible” because they will face much more serious penalties after encroaching onto private land. However landowners and shoots which have been targeted by the anti-shooting lobby, suffering trespass and property damage, will doubtless…
General licences restricted on Leadhills Estate following wildlife crime
In the past week Scottish Natural Heritage has announced that it is restricting the use of general licences on the Leadhills Estate in South Lanarkshire after evidence of wildlife crime against birds was provided by Police Scotland. Nick Halfhide, SNH’s Director of Sustainable Growth, explained: “There is clear evidence that…
Pakistan to hold Extreme Long Range (ELR) shooting championship for first time
The second Muhammad Ali Jinnah Open Shooting Championship will be held in the city of Bahawalpur in southern Punjab region from 5th to 18th Dec 2019 – a city characterised by rich architecture and the serene beauty of the surrounding Cholistan desert. It is being held at the Noor Mahal Palace…
Labour launches “most radical animal welfare plan in the world”
Labour has called its plans for tackling wildlife crime the “most radical animal welfare plan in the world”. The party has stated that it would spend an additional £4.5m to recruit wildlife crime officers with numbers increasing from 88 to 170. The officers would be dedicated to dealing with illegal hare coursing,…
Do you have a deactivated firearm in your possession? Read on and stay within the law
All owners of deactivated weapons will now need to ensure that they notify the Home Office. From 12 December it will be a legal requirement to register the transfer of deactivated weapons with the Home Office. Notification of the possession of deactivated weapons will be staggered. Those acquired after September 2018…
British Shooting Show announces additional Manchester event
The British Shooting & Countryman Show will take place at Event City in Manchester on 19-20 September 2020 and on 18th & 19th September 2021, 17th and 18th September 2022 The September event was originally due to be held in Liverpool but was banned after action by the Mayor of…
Reading University bans pheasant shooting
Following an internal review, the University of Reading has decided to stop organised game shooting on its land. It will also no longer allow university farmland to be used to raise pheasants or partridges for shooting “once an existing agreement with an external group that uses University farmland comes to…
RSPB to review gameshooting and land management
Kevin Cox, the chair of the Council, has announced that the RSPB would be reviewing its policy on gameshooting and land management. He stated that RSPB policy makers would develop “a set of conservation tests for management practices associated with game bird shooting.” He acknowledged that this is an “emotive issue”. He…
Chris Packham confronted by moorland communities in Yorkshire
Moorland communities made their feelings loud and clear to Chris Packham, stressing that misleading statements and actions by the likes of the TV presenter are putting their way of life under threat. Chris Packham is renowned for speaking out against driven grouse shooting. The presenter, campaigner and author was met…
Liverpool city council condemns shooting of all animals as “barbaric”
A cross-party motion at a meeting of Liverpool city council on the evening of 16 October 2019 has condemned shooting of all animals as “barbaric.” The motion was put forward after plans for the British Shooting Show to take place in Liverpool in September 2020 were pulled by the council,…
British Shooting Show Liverpool banned
The British Shooting Show Liverpool was to take place in September 2020, but has now been banned after action by the Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson. Anderson said: ‘This Council declares its complete opposition to any form of hunting live animals with hounds or shooting live game, in the UK…
Changes to general licences in Wales from 7 October
What you need to know about the changes to general licences in Wales which come into effect from 7 October 2019, Changes to GL001, GL002 and GL004 GL001 – Issued for preventing serious damage to livestock, foodstuffs for livestock, crops, vegetables or fruit or to prevent the spread of disease…
Lead shot shown to be major cause of bird deaths
Spent lead shot significantly weakens the immune systems of wild birds and is a major cause of death, according to a newly released scientific paper. The paper entitled Immunotoxic effects of lead on birds was published in Science of the Total Environment. The harmful effect of spent lead shot on…
Labour Party outlines shooting plans
The Labour Party has released its Animal Welfare Manifesto, which includes a number of proposals that could affect the future of shooting. The 10-page document, announced recently by Sue Hayman, the shadow environment secretary, proposes, among other things: the prohibition of keeping gamebirds in cages and a plan to ban…