Owners of firearms which were previously classed as antique will require a firearms licence for them from Wednesday 22 September 2021 when the antique firearms law changes. This follows legislation passed earlier this year on 22 March with the passage of the Antique Firearms Regulations 2021, which gave the definition of…
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Shooting faces ‘enormous task’ after Scottish Government announcement
The Scottish Government has published its programme for government and shooting now faces ‘an enormous task’ to secure its future in the country. Fox control Among the planned bills was a “Fox Control Bill” and without providing further details, the programme simply said that the bill would relate “to the…
Illegal and unethical ‘falconry’ exposed
Shooting Times was made aware of the underground practice of ‘urban falconry’ after a link to a Tik Tok video was sent to the magazine by a reader who believed it may show criminality. The video showed a Harris hawk being flown from the window of a moving vehicle and…
DEFRA document raises fears of blanket ban on lead ammunition
In a move that suggests it is looking to bring forward a ban on the use of lead ammunition, Defra has launched its online consultation on the substance and its alternatives. The UK appeared to have dodged a requirement to ban lead ammunition under the European Union Reach framework. Earlier…
Anti-hunting activist who exposed info of gun owners says actions ‘not criminal’
The anti-hunting activist who put an estimated 80,000 to 90,000 gun owners at risk has said they do not believe they have committed a crime. Their comments came as cyber police launched a massive effort to find them and to have data stolen from the Guntrader website taken offline. The…
Dog theft to become criminal offence
A new law that imposes severe measures for those found guilty of stealing pets has been announced today, 3rd September. Pet abduction will become a new criminal offence as the Government follows the recommendations made by its Pet Theft Taskforce, which was formed in May 2021. The law will recognise…
Antis publish searchable map of gun owners
The website, which Shooting Times has been asked by authorities not to name, has in the past ‘doxxed’ those involved in hunting and the badger cull, publishing home addresses and phone numbers. However, the deliberate promotion of the information taken from Guntrader marks a huge escalation of its attacks on…
Wet weather and late harvest hit grey partridges
Wet weather applies several different pressures on grey partridges. As well as chilling chicks, it also forces hen birds to forage for longer periods and to stray further from their nests. This leaves both hen birds and chicks vulnerable to predation from foxes, stoats and crows. “As thunderstorms struck southern…
Goose shooting season – hopes high for a successful year
Migratory wildfowl are yet to arrive in the UK in numbers and due to COVID-related disruption, data on their breeding numbers is relatively poor this year. However there are reasons to believe that when the Iceland and Greenland breeding geese arrive they will come in good numbers. In recent years…
SNP and Scottish Green Party enter coalition – what does this mean for conservation?
The Scottish National Party (SNP) is the largest party in the Parliament. However it is short of an outright majority and will need the support of the seven Green MSPs in order to push through much of its legislative agenda. Crucially, Green votes will be needed in order to pass…
Introducing the Team GB Paralympic Shooting Squad
The Paralympics takes place from 24 August to 5 September. This year Team GB sent seven shooting athletes from across the UK to the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. Issy Bailey, 27, from Cirencester Disciplines: Women’s 10m Air Pistol, SH1. Mixed 25m Pistol, SH1. Tokyo is Issy’s second Paralympic Games, having…
Climate change – shoots use nature-based solutions to tackle problem
Restoring petland has been identified by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as one of the key tools to sequester Carbon and it is an opportunity shooting estates have eagerly taken up. The Sphagnum mosses which make up peat lock up carbon dioxide much more quickly and for…
Grouse shooting – Shots predict quiet season ahead
The grouse season has got off to a quiet start with most moors not shooting at all on the 12th and many expecting no significant shooting for the whole season. The now traditional 12th of August political and media bunfight was also much more muted than has been the case…
Shoots ‘very busy’ for season ahead
With most of the UK shooting season put on hold last year due to COVID, speculation has been rife about how shooting would bounce back. However there is no evidence that demand for shooting has waned during the pandemic and Guns seem ready to return to the field in numbers.…
Grouse shooting endorsed in major new academic study
A newly published 242 page report by a team from the University of Nottingham entitled “Sustainable Grouse Shooting? A Summary of the Evidence” looked at the cases for and against driven grouse shooting. Its conclusions will come as a serious blow to critics of moorland management for grouse. Examining the…
Vainglorious Twelfth
As reported in Shooting Times a couple of weeks ago, this year the grouse season is proving anything but glorious after a cold spring and summer reduced bird numbers, resulting in many shoots cancelling grouse bookings this year. Shooting Times understands that a London private club where grouse has…
Hen harrier chick numbers soar on managed moorland
Reports of successful hen harrier nests from around the country raise the prospects of another record-breaking year for hen harrier numbers. Land managers have reported 24 successful nests on moorland in Northumberland, North Yorkshire, County Durham, Cumbria, Derbyshire and Lancashire. Of the 24 successful nests, 19 are on moors managed…
Consultation on general licences in Northern Ireland has been dropped
The Department of Agriculture Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) abandoned the consultation process after it came under fire for bias. The consultation had looked at proposals to remove herring gulls, both species of black-backed gull and rooks from 2021/22 general licences for Northern Ireland. However, countryside groups pointed out fundamental…
Grouse shooting: efforts to pressure companies into abandoning the sport prove unsuccessful
In an attempt to use the press to ambush Yorkshire Water, anti-shooting campaigners have been promoting the claim that the company is ending shooting leases on land it owns. The Yorkshire Post ran the story under the headline, “Yorkshire Water to end grouse shooting tenancies on two of its moors…
Missing dogs to feature on packaging in new DogLost campaign
The numbers of dogs stolen and missing has escalated in the past few years. Thieves have been particularly targeting working dogs which are known to be well socialised and good natured. The price of puppies has risen incredibly, making working dogs more valuable than ever. (Read our advice on keeping…