Save money on your favourite fieldsports magazine by taking out a subscription today. Wild Justice’s attempts to disrupt the muirburn season have been thrown out of court at a judicial review. Wild Justice has been ordered to pay £10,000 in costs to Defra, the National Gamekeeper’s Organisation, the Countryside Alliance…
News
What’s happening with woodcock?
With the November full moon now just 4 weeks away the thoughts of game shooters are turning increasingly to woodcock and hopes are high for strong early falls. A few birds have begun to drift in with odd examples reported by shooters and birdwatchers however no substantial falls have yet…
Scotland’s final muirburn season gets underway
Save money on Shooting Times by taking out a subscription here. What seems likely to be Scotland’s final unlicensed muirburn season has got underway. The season officially opens on the 1st of October, but wet weather delayed the start of burning on many estates. Now a brief window without rain…
Scottish Gamekeepers Association attacks BASC over deer plans
In a scathing blog, SGA Chairman Alex Hogg questioned the motive behind the BASC plan. Alex said: “If this is about opportunism and winning new shooting grounds for members, then there is likely to be questions asked about how this will make things better for deer management in Scotland today.”…
Anger builds as New Zealand venison is marked ‘Highland Game’
Sybil Macpherson took to Facebook after spotting the product in her local Tesco. In a post showing the pack Sybil said “I was both surprised and disappointed to read the label on this pack of venison for sale yesterday. Why, when we have ample supplies of Scottish venison available, is…
65% of country’s shoots will be ‘lead free’ by end of 2023, according to survey
The Savills Game and Conservation Benchmarking Survey found that the vast majority of shoots had already got rid of plastic shotgun wads and that most were expecting to transition away from lead shot. Conservation work is also being given increasing priority by shoots with two-third of respondents saying they undertook…
Countryside groups ready for court action if fox control bill prevents humane practices
Shooting Times understands that countryside groups are in receipt of advice that they potentially have strong challenges to legislation under the European Convention on Human Rights and that they have been marshalling resources to take the case to court. Fox control bill Currently, packs of dogs may be used to…
Scottish Gamekeepers’ Association reaffirms opposition to lead shot ban
The Scottish Gamekeepers’ Association (SGA) has restated its opposition to a transition away from the use of lead shot. Now in a message encouraging members to engage with the Health and Safety Executive’s lead ammunition consultation, the Association has restated that position. The message said: “Some countryside shooting organisations, led…
Welsh Government announces plan to ban snaring
Ban snaring There had been signs that the Welsh Government might make a move to ban snaring when it issued a consultation earlier this year which said that, “It is the Law Commission’s view that, in the future, the operation and inspection of snares may benefit from additional regulations prescribing…
Antique firearms law changes 22 September 2021
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…
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…