Scottish Land and Estates and the Scottish Gamekeepers’ Association have written a letter of complaint to the BBC, claiming ‘misrepresentation’ on The One Show programme.
The programme (see here and here) included a feature on golden eagle persecution and during a studio interview, the RSPB’s Stuart Benn laid the blame firmly at the door of gamekeepers on Scottish grouse moors.
Doug McAdam, Chief Exec of Scottish Land & Estates, took great exception to that statement and wrote a hilarious letter of complaint, on behalf of SLE and SGA, to The One Show’s executive editor, Sandy Smith.
Here is his letter: SLE SGA complaint about BBC One Show
According to dear old Doug, there have only been four dead golden eagles found since 2010 and no charges [for these deaths] have been brought against anyone involved in grouse moor management. Conveniently, he failed to include the other known incidents of dead raptors turning up on grouse moors since 2010 (including white-tailed eagles, red kites, hen harriers, buzzards, short-eared owls, sparrowhawks, peregrines, kestrels), or the critically-injured golden eagle found shot and left to die on a grouse moor, or indeed the satellite-tagged raptors (particularly golden eagles and hen harriers) who have all gone ‘missing’ after their last known signal was received from, er, a grouse moor. There may well be more of these ‘missing’ birds but of course we’re no longer allowed to hear about them after the introduction of the new PAW Scotland ‘protocol’ that aims to keep these incidents away from the public’s gaze (see here).
Apart from trying to play down the extent of persecution incidents on grouse moors, and inferring that a lack of criminal convictions is a good indicator that gamekeepers are not involved with the illegal killing of golden eagles on grouse moors, Doug goes on to emphasise the SLE’s involvement with PAW Scotland, as though membership of that ‘partnership’ should be a measure of good behaviour. We’ve all seen how effective these ‘partnerships’ can be, following the near-extinction of breeding hen harriers on English grouse moors during the six-year Hen Harrier Dialogue ‘partnership’ designed to resolve the conflict. Indeed, three raptor conservation organisations have now resigned from that particular ‘partnership’ because they recognised it could be used as a convenient political cover by certain organisations with grouse-shooting interests.
Doug makes an astonishing claim about the PAW Scotland partnership: “Our combined efforts with the police, rural communities, the RSPB and over 120 other relevant stakeholders have been universally acknowledged as a key factor in reducing the number of raptor persecution incidents“.
Talk about misleading! For a start, there are not 120 ‘relevant stakeholders’ in relation to addressing raptor persecution. Many of the stakeholders have absolutely no involvement in directly addressing raptor persecution – they are there to specifically address other types of wildlife crime such as poaching, theft of freshwater pearl mussels, bat persecution and badger persecution.
Secondly, where does this notion come from that work by PAW Scotland has been ‘universally acknowledged as a key factor in reducing the number of raptor persecution incidents’? Has it been ‘universally acknowledged’? We don’t think PAW Scotland has had any demonstrable impact whatsoever on the number of raptor persecution incidents – where’s the evidence? Perhaps by ‘universal’ he means those with a vested interest in having people think that illegal raptor persecution is being dealt with effectively (e.g. the police, SNH, Scottish Government, SLE, SGA etc etc).
Doug finishes by saying, “Owners of moorland estates all over Scotland look after golden eagles” (ahem) and he invites Sandy Smith to visit a grouse moor “to find out for yourself the valuable conservation measures being implemented“. Let’s hope Sandy takes him up on his offer. Ooh, which grouse moor to choose? We could give Sandy quite a few suggestions….
Sandy Smith responded with a letter of his own: One Show’s reply to SLE
He says he’s sent an email to all One Show staff and suppliers “asking them to ensure they don’t make assumptions about gamekeepers based on out of date or inaccurate assumptions“.
Interestingly, Sandy Smith was the former executive editor of Panorama – a programme recognised for its investigative journalism and an ability to differentiate between fact and PR. Let’s hope he’s taken those qualities with him to The One Show.
We’ve sent a letter to Sandy, giving him the URL of this blog, to ensure his staff are kept up to date and are not basing their work on inaccurate assumptions (spin). You may wish to do the same – send your email, marked for the attention of Sandy Smith, to: TheOneShowEmails@bbc.co.uk
If you think grouse moor owners and their gamekeepers need to be held to account for their activities, please sign this e-petition and share it with your friends and colleagues: SIGN HERE.
Here’s a photo showing how well golden eagles are looked after on some Scottish grouse moors. This one was found critically injured on Buccleuch Estate last aututmn – he had been shot and left to die, although it is not known on whose land he was shot. He is currently recuperating with the SSPCA after undergoing life-saving surgery. Needless to say, nobody has been charged for this crime.
Raptor Persecution UK 
Here we go, the season of diversionary positioning has arrived!! At the weekend I posted an entry on my own Blog ( http://www.birdingodyssey.blogspot.com/ ) relating to Hen Harriers, which suggests that the shooting fraternity, in my estimation, is firmly on the back foot and idiotic statements are likely to be the order of the day. Much of what is contained within the current correspondence appears to fall in that category. I intend sending a copy of that Blog entry to the One Show along with other comments.
The halcyon days of independence, isolation and operating to a strategy of their own choosing is rapidly diminishing for the various estates and their practitioners and supporters. Those days will never return and yet the people involved still insist on their aspirations, and prejudices, being based in reality. They are operating in a bubble of their own construction, as opposed to something within the 21st Century which relates to the will and requirements of the majority, namely a healthy, prospering wildlife heritage that we all can enjoy in the knowledge that it will not be limited by some members of a self appointed minority engaged in commercial activity, and breaking the law into the bargain.
The above “industry” will increasingly attempt to paint itself in an acceptable light and claim they are working , along with many others, to eliminate the scourge that is raptor persecution. But where is the real evidence of condemnation and vilification of those within their own ranks who are responsible?. Does the SGA, for example, remove any recalcitrant members from its ranks and confirm its actions?. Where is the evidence of any initiatives being taken within their own peer group of actual actions directed at stopping persecution ? Claims to be involved in Golden Eagle conservation is one thing, but amount to little more than expressing empathy with the ideal. Actual actions on the ground via wide ranging initiatives are another thing entirely! Where, precisely , have such occurred and with what success? This is not an invitation to quote circumstances where, over the years, sympathetic landowners have protected raptors on their land, but to set out where a new emphasis has been directed and altered, positively, a situation where persecution was known to be rife in the past. It’s known as putting money where your mouth is , not voicing empty claims with no evidential basis. When we receive details of that sort contrasted against the huff-puff currently being fed out then we will know the shooting industry is sincere in its claims and resolved to bring about change. Until then I feel none of us will be convinced!
***** RPS….I realise you probably have a policy of not allowing other Blog references and concede the need for you to remove the above if necessary. Again, Thanks. John.
[Ed: Hi John, nope, we’re happy to include links to other blogs if they’re relevant, which yours is!]
I suppose they could have a point, you can’t really lay all the blame for the slaughter of protected Raptors on the Grouse moors at the feet of the gamekeepers alone when their employers could be just as much to blame if not more so. I mean, if the gamekeepers weren’t employed by the Grouse moor owners to ensure unnaturally high bags of Red Grouse just for the paying guns to slaughter on moors that can’t naturally support them, then they wouldn’t be persecuting the birds of prey, would they ???
Agreed nirofo, they vare all in it together.One thing to remember is that the landowners have to keep in with the keepers..if there was a split the keepers would have some very interesting stories to tell.
I remain deeply unimpressed by the BBC [or their lawyers] who have a history of backing down as soon as landowners and their chums start sabre rattling. The statement that persecutors have friends in high places in not just rhetoric – this has happened before…but the public wont be fooled.
You’re right about the BBC, it will be interesting to see which way they go this time.
I think I predicted this would happen. I think they really are bunch of vile, devious, lying scumbuckets.
I hate to hark back to past messages, but I must reiterate a point about convictions. Jimmy Saville (and the BBC know all about him) did not receive any criminal convictions, even though he committed sexual abuse on many people, over a period spanning many decades. Despite the massive cover-up, it didn’t make him innocent.
Perhaps it’s just me, but it seems that SLE and SGA are only capable of offering the exact same argument, time and time again. It’s the same old bollocks about partnership working and how much “conservation” work they carry out to help a “wide range of birds”. As mentioned elsewhere on the site, there are many more bird species affected by the activities of grouse moor gamekeepers.
But if the landowning and gamekeeping communities are so keen to have their opinions heard, then there should be an hour-long BBC debate, similar to Question Time, with panelists from the RSPB, OneKind, the SGA and SLE (and perhaps an independent MP such as George Galloway).
I know that three of those would be up for this, but I do have a feeling that there would be two organisations that wouldn’t welcome such public exposure.
Your picture of that golden eagle laid out on a veterinary table is the saddest thing I have seen for a long time. Good for the Scottish SPCA – of course – but how did we ever get to a position where great wild birds like that have to be anaesthetised for surgery (at the expense of a welfare charity) after being shot? And yet people complain about a TV programme? It’s a mad world.