The Scottish Gamekeepers Day’, organised by BASC, provides gamekeepers across Scotland with a forum for debating important issues such as game bird disease management, and allows gamekeepers to stay abreast of changes in the law. A clay shooting competition will also be included in the day’s events. BASC Scotland director…
News
Gun licence fee increases put to Parliament for approval
Government proposals to increase gun licence fees that would see the cost of a shotgun certificate rise from £50 to £79.50 have been put to Parliament for approval. The firearms licensing fees order contains suggested increases based on the findings of a Home Office working group that included representatives from…
Labour repeats pledges to raise gun licence fees to tackle deficit
Labour’s shadow chief secretary to the treasury, Chris Leslie, has repeated his party’s plans to increase gun licence fees to deal with the national deficit. He was challenged during an opposition day debate on 4 March on the economy by Conservative treasury minister David Gauke about his previous statement that…
Melissa Rigby to work with John Rigby & Co.
Melissa Rigby, a London-based goldsmith and enameller, and the great, great, great granddaughter of John Rigby, was invited to join the firm by managing director Marc Newton during her visit to the John Rigby & Co. workshop and showroom in Vauxhall. John Rigby & Co. managing director Marc Newton said:…
BASC council candidate – Ann Mortimer
Professor Ann Mortimer, aged 57, is a professor of psychiatry and a consultant psychiatrist. She lives in rural East Yorkshire. She is standing for one of five contested seats in this year’s BASC council elections. What is your shooting and conservation background? Until 10 years ago, I didn’t have one.…
Beretta 682 Gold E for sale
A private seller is selling this great example of a Beretta 682 Gold E for sale at £1,495. FEATURES: – 30″ Sporting with O/U barrels – Set of 5 optima bore chokes (red, blue, yellow, green, black) – 14.1/2’’ stock – trigger to mid butt – Spare 1″ BUTT –…
Royal Berkshire Shooting School to lay on kids’ courses
The all-day courses will act as a comprehensive introduction to shooting, provided by full-time instructors, but that doesn’t mean that those already in to their shooting who want to improve their skills can’t attend. The courses will be based at Royal Berkshire Shooting School in Pangbourne and cover a wide…
Historic Purdey Bicentenary Trio sold
The Purdey Bicentenary Trio, a unique set that consists of a 12-bore side-by-side shotgun, a 20-bore Damascus over-and-under shotgun and a .470 double rifle, was sold to a private collector for an undisclosed fee. When viewed together the two shotguns and rifle that make up the Purdey Bicentenary Trio represent…
BASC game and beer night with Hook Norton Brewery
The evening will include a 45-minute tour of the Victorian Tower Brewery, a selection of game dishes served with a different beer, and a prize draw. James Clarke, managing director of Hook Norton Brewery, will be on hand to give an explanation of each beer served. Huw Lloyd, BASC England…
Labour promise to “reduce animal cruelty on shooting estates”
Party leader Ed Miliband said: “Our Labour values tell us that we have a moral duty to treat the animals we share our planet with in a humane and compassionate way. No other major political party has such a proven track record of decisive action for animals at home, on…
Court dismisses RSPB covert surveillance case as abuse of process
Magistrates at Northallerton have dismissed a case brought by the RSPB alleging misuse of a cage trap by a grousemoor keeper on the grounds that the way the charity carried out its investigations amounted to an abuse of process and denied the defendant the prospect of a fair trial. The court held…
Scottish Roe Review 2014
Annual roe reviews offer a chance for a catch-up — a catch-up on what was recently harvested and, increasingly, a catch-up and a reflection on what has been harvested in years and sometimes decades past, then often left to moulder in man caves and cardboard boxes up and down the…
Browning B725 Grade 5
Sportsman Gun Centre have this Browning B725 Grade 5 for sale from £2,995. Take a look at this great secondhand example of this classic game gun now. Click here to view this secondhand Browning B725 Grade 5 for sale!
New Rural Business Awards launched
Rural marketing company Be Rural has launched a set of awards to celebrate excellence in rural enterprise. Nominations for the Rural Business Awards opened on 9 February and will close on 24 April. The awards, which are supported by the CLA and sponsored by Sturgess Motor Group, will be presented at…
Candidates for BASC council announced
The candidates for election to BASC council this summer have been announced. Twelve members from across the country have put their names forward to fight it out for five contested places on the council and two further candidates have stepped up to take responsibility for uncontested council seats representing Northern…
BASC members quiz MPs at House of Commons
The meeting took place in the Grand Committee Room of the House of Commons. The panel included Lord de Mauley, the DEFRA minister responsible for shooting, Angela Smith MP, the Labour shadow minister responsible for shooting and Roger Williams MP, a rural affairs spokesman for the Liberal Democrats. Geoffrey Clifton-Brown…
Balaclava battle: campaign seeks to unmask anti-hunt thugs
The Countryside Alliance has launched an online campaign to unmask anti-hunt thugs and put an end to their intimidation of rural people. The Alliance is urging people to write to their Police & Crime Commissioners and MPs to make sure that police forces have the procedures in place allowing them…
English and Welsh roe heads review 2014
Last November, new guidelines for the European species within the CIC’s Red Book — the “bible” of international trophy measuring — were published for internal use. The changes, in principle, will provide greater consistency of measuring throughout a species’ range and provide the trophy judges with clearer technical information. These…
DEFRA’s Elizabeth Truss MP gets in on game
The presentation was made outside Westminster by Jose Souto, game chef and senior chef lecturer at Westminster Kingsway College, and Annette Cole from Taste of Game, just as the driven game shooting season was coming to a close. The pheasants were shot in Lincolnshire and provided by the Parson’s Nose…
Updated: Norwegian parliament votes to repeal lead shot ban
The Norwegian parliament today (3 February) resolved by 79 votes to 16 to reintroduce lead shot for live quarry hunting outside wetlands. The decision follows a lengthy campaign by BASC’s sister organisation in Norway the Norwegian Association of Hunters and Anglers – the Jegernes Interesseorganisasjon (JI). BASC chairman Alan Jarrett…