All shooters, keepers, farmers and landmanagers are encouraged to take part in submitting evidence to Defra to state how the sudden Natural England ruling on general licences has affected them. Defra has launched a call for evidence on the impact of the recent @NaturalEngland decision to revoke three general licences.…
DEFRA
The new individual licences from Natural England – what’s been the experience of shooters so far?
Staff at Natural England have been working through more than 1000 applications from farmers gamekeepers and pest shooters since the previous system of general licences was scrapped a week ago. The individual licences have been welcomed as clearer and much less restrictive than the new general licence for carrion crows…
Government has no plans to license grouse shooting
The Government has highlighted the importance of shooting and said it has no intention to licence driven grouse shooting after responding to an online petition. The petition, which received the support of the RSPB, said that licensing was a “middle way” between an outright ban and doing nothing, which would…
Badger culls may expand, then end
The Government is to review its 25-year bovine tuberculosis (TB) strategy, with suggestions that it will expand its badger culls, before moving away from the practice in later phases of the plan in favour of other approaches. The 25-year strategy outlines a range of ways in which to combat bovine…
Defra boss shares rural vision
Rural groups have welcomed the commitment to British farming shown by Defra secretary Michael Gove as he set out his vision for the future of the industry in a speech earlier this month. Speaking at the 2018 Oxford Farming Conference, Mr Gove highlighted issues he wished to tackle to ensure…