A few weeks ago Ian Botham featured in an article published by The Times, in which it was reported Botham had accused the RSPB of being “dishonest” (see here).
The Times article was apparently based on an interview that Botham had done with the Shooting Gazette. Thanks to one of our blog readers, we now have a PDF copy of that Shooting Gazette interview:
Shooting Gazette Nov 17 Ian Botham Article
It’s well worth a read to find out Botham’s views on what changes he would make to the RSPB and how the You Forgot the Birds campaign will “never stop“.
But the question and answer we were most interested in was this:
Shooting Gazette question: Are there any issues about shooting in the UK that concern you?
Botham’s answer: “One of the things that needs to be looked at is the nonsense about lead [ammunition]. It’s been blown totally out of proportion“.
Unfortunately, Botham doesn’t identify which part of the vast expanse of scientific evidence about the danger of toxic lead to humans, wildlife & the environment he thinks is “nonsense”.
Perhaps its the findings of this eminent group of international scientific professors and researchers?
Perhaps its the findings of this eminent group of international scientific researchers?
Perhaps its the findings of this eminent group of scientific researchers?
Perhaps its the findings of the international scientific experts who contributed to the Oxford Lead Symposium?
Perhaps its the findings of the Lead Ammunition Group?
Perhaps its the advice of the Food Standards Agency?
Perhaps its the guidelines of Fareshare?
Perhaps its the findings of the European Food Safety Authority?
Hmm. Should we believe the evidence of hundreds of scientific experts, including The Lord Krebs kt, MA, DPhil, FRS, FMedSci, Hon DSc, or should we believe the opinion of the King of Bollocks?
It’s a tricky one.
Raptor Persecution UK 
Superb!, well put, you do have a way with words!
He’s probably suffering from lead poisoning. Ian Botham: beefy of physique; feeble of mind.
Additionally, we have the “gormless expression” of the two characters in the photos above. “wha’ are we doin’ ‘ere?” “The gritty bits in the meat are quite chewy!” and prone to mindless ramblings devoid of sense.
I spotted some beaters walking around a field on Sat afternoon and several people carrying guns, very close to a busy dual carriageway. In the area of Ince Blundell just north of Liverpool. No grouse there but plenty of “farm raised gun fodder”.
Never thought I would see a photo where two puppets were more intelligent than the human.
Still all the worlds a rainbow 🌈.
“In last year’s debate in Parliament [on whether grouse shooting should be banned] MPs voted overwhelmingly against these activists.” It was a Westminster Hall debate and there was no vote so how could they have voted overwhelmingly for or against? Another piece of Botham misinformation!
It is true to say that they dominated the argument, even though their evidence relied on so much bullshit and dishonesty, in opposition to the quality and veracity of scientific evidence put forward by the petitioners.
They turned up en masse and dominated proceedings, it’s true, because too few Labour MPs could be persuaded to attend. A vote in Parliament would have been quite a different matter and nothing can be meaningfully extrapolated from the Westminster Hall debate to the likely outcome of such a vote. Botham was uttering rubbish.
Careful, I’m expecting Zippy & George to go for a restraining order any day now to stop you repeatedly publishing material that will damage their professional standing.
I see he thinks we’ve ‘gone underground’ since the ‘vote in Parliament’ (sic).
You wish!
I guess that’s why we still use leaded fuel, lead based paints, lead pipes etc etc.
You forgot the brains, still going strong!
I thought lead based paint was banned from general sale in the 1990s in the U.K.? I’m pretty sure the USA also stopped producing it before this. I know we use reduced lead petrol in the car, as for lead pipes I think the utilities have pipe replacement programmes. Others here will be able to confirm.
I think Homer was being sarcastic.
I realised after I posted that this was the case, I must have been tired and emotional at the time.
Recent Italian study suggests eating lead shot game doesn’t increase lead level in body!….just saying…
Please can you provide the reference and a URL link to this study?
https://moh-it.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/blood-lead-levels-following-consumption-of-game-meat-in-italy
Possibly this
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28189071
although hunters had twice the level of lead than non-hunters.
Explains a lot.
It might be this one: Blood lead levels following consumption of game meat in Italy
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935116309458?via%3Dihub
The non-paywalled bit is quite confusing, but it does say “Median blood lead levels was: 1.7 (5th–95th percentile 1.0–5.3) µg/dL and 3.4 (0.9–6.1) µg/dL for game meat non-eaters and eater, respectively.”
It doesn’t inspire confidence, but I haven’t read the rest of the paper.
Having read the full article, they state
“Possible reasons for the highest Pb-blood levels are under investigation, but the presence of fragments of shot ingested with game meals cannot be excluded.”
Interestingly, they found an association between hunting and Pb-blood levels, with double Pb-blood concentrations in hunters compared to non-hunters, irrespective of game meat eating suggesting handling lead ammo or other exposure routes might also contribute to Pb levels.
It was a relatively under-powered study, self-reporting and funded by an Italian hunting association.
‘ self-reporting and funded by an Italian hunting association.’
So pretty much worthless then, other than perhaps providing a bit of impetus for a proper study.
Italian hunters are notoriously trigger happy and frequently shoot each other in the frenzy to kill.
They will therefore have high levels of lead in their system! :-)
Doug
https://moh-it.pure.elsevier.com/en/publications/blood-lead-levels-following-consumption-of-game-meat-in-italy
That study seems to have been of a group of 95 people in total. I’m not sure how many of them were eating shot game, how many were eating shot game and were shooters, how many were eating shot game who didn’t shoot, and how many were shooters who didn’t eat shot game. It would also be interesting to know what type of shot game was being eaten, was it small birds, shot with a shotgun, or was it larger animals like wild boar shot with a rifle? Was the shot game tested for lead levels before consumption? Was there any confirmation of the amount of shot game each individual consumed, or was the evidence self reported?
It certainly seems curious that consuming shot game does not result in higher than average levels of lead in the blood, but that shooting does.
Perhaps he’s angling for Foreign Secretary?
Yes as usual he talked a load of utter crap, although it must be said I find fishing relaxing too. Shooting for the pot ! I rather doubt that but it would explain all the nonsense he spouts due to raised lead levels.
One thing that struck me given the almost total absence in England of Peregrines on grouse moors and I doubt Scotland is any different where is the moor with five breeding pairs and are they successful?
WE are always honest yet the dark side get away with utter unscientific tosh because they all seem so blinkered, there is this crap and the recent shite from GWCTs Andrew Gilruth about the Birdcrime report.
Ok, this advice is regarding geochemical lead in the ground, but lead is lead, I think, so why would NFU go to the trouble if there wasn’t a problem? https://www.nfuonline.com/assets/96516
And this was interesting, though I’ve only read the abstract! http://nrl.northumbria.ac.uk/17004/
“Lead intoxication incidents associated with shot from clay pigeon shooting”
http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/173/22/552.2.full
“Lead poisoning was confirmed in a flock of 2000 free range laying hens which were 42 weeks into lay. The hens’ range was next to an active clay pigeon shoot. The flock had never reached its expected production potential and mortality had slowly increased.”
“Waitrose recalls thousands of organic eggs over lead scare”:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-565237/Waitrose-recalls-thousands-organic-eggs-lead-scare.html
“Free-range birds from one flock wandered on to a field being used for clay pigeon shooting and ate lead shot.
A vet was called after some of the chickens became ill and it was discovered they had higher than normal levels of lead in them.
The eggs were then removed from the shelves.”
The practice range of Peter Wilson, the 2012 Olympic double trap shooting champion closed because lead shot was polluting adjacent farmland:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/9714532/Olympic-shooting-champions-practice-range-could-close-in-a-row-over-gunshot-pollution.html
Hmmm, it’s a tricky one indeed, I’ll take answer One – the scientific experts please Bob.
Ian Botham what a PLANK.
He clearly doesn’t know shit from clay.
Not even if he tasted it
If Botham was xxxxx xxxx xxxxx, he would put his money where his mouth is and respond to my challenge to publicly eat 6 g of powdered lead or drink 6 mL of tetraethyl lead. If lead is harmless, prove it.
Perhaps Mr Botham ought to get himself tested for ingested lead. This might explain the nonsense he spouts