The non-profit company Wild Justice launched last month with the intention of taking legal action, on behalf of wildlife, against public bodies where they are failing to protect species and/or habitats.
Wild Justice’s first case has just been announced and it is a legal challenge against the casual killing of birds permitted under Natural England’s General Licences.
The statutory agency Natural England allows the unlimited killing of a wide variety of bird species under a series of ‘General Licences’ which are published at the start of each year. Birds such as Carrion Crows, Rooks, Magpies, Woodpigeons, Jackdaws, Jays and Ring-necked Parakeets can be killed without applying for a licence, without having to justify why the action is necessary, without having to explain why alternative non-lethal measures such as scaring or proofing are ineffective or impracticable, and without having to report on how many birds are killed. All a person needs to do to ‘qualify’ to kill unlimited numbers of these birds is to claim to have read and understood the relevant General Licence.
[Photo of a Jay, by Laurie Campbell. This is one of several species which may be killed in unlimited numbers under the General Licence]
Wild Justice believes this system is unlawful despite the fact that it has been in existence for decades and has ‘authorised’ the casual killing of millions of birds. Wild Justice contends that it is the licensing authority’s (Natural England’s) legal responsibility to satisfy itself that killing these birds is an appropriate last resort. However, in the General Licences issued on 1 January 2019 Natural England ducks its responsibility and instead places the decision-making completely in the hands of the General Licence user.
Wild Justice is seeking a judicial review of Natural England’s decision to issue General Licences GL04, GL05 and GL06 on 1 January 2019. Similar licences apply to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and this case may have implications in those countries too.
Wild Justice is not asking for the 2019 General Licences to be withdrawn, but rather that Natural England does not issue further General Licences and instead develops a legal system for regulating and monitoring the killing of birds if lethal control is absolutely necessary as a last resort.
Wild Justice sees the General Licence system as a clear example of how wildlife killing is largely unregulated in the UK. The system is lax and allows gamekeepers, farmers and others to kill birds without any proper oversight or regulation.
To bring this legal challenge to court, Wild Justice is crowdfunding, with a target of £36,000 to cover all costs associated with such legal action.
If you’d like to support and contribute towards this legal challenge, please visit Wild Justice’s crowdfunder page HERE.
Raptor Persecution UK 
There is absolutely no justification for shoots who release three quarter grown pheasants to kill any corvids. Its purely for the love of killing
Seeing that beautiful picture of a Jay with the accompanying words regarding their legal slaughter….just makes me weep in despair,. They know not what they do……
Absolutely brilliant! I’ll be donating tonight. Thanks.
[Ed: Sorry Lizzybusy, the rest of your comment is way off topic]
Excellent first Wild Justice case choice. I contacted NE as I was concerned by an individual’s justification and methods of killing of a species listed on the General Licence. This individual thought they could pretty much do what they like under the General Licence, as long as species is listed. Interestingly, NE said that they could not comment whether or not the actions of this individual would be covered by under the General License. And that if in doubt, I should contact the police who could look into things to see whether the individual’s actions were lawful or not. Too many grey areas and too much killing for no justifiable reason.
The Guardian article is a bit disappointing as it confuses General Licences with special licenses. Or at least that is how i understand it.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/mar/15/wildlife-campaigners-chris-packham-legal-action-pest-bird-killings-natural-england
The article and campaign refer to General Licences but James Diamond is allowed to confuse the issue by referring to special licences when he says
“This could be where a bird is trapped in food preparation premises or is posing a threat of bird-strike at an airport.
These licence applications are carefully considered by our experts – including our ornithologists where necessary – and are only granted when all other measures have been explored.
The number of birds that may be killed is strictly limited and won’t harm the conservation status of any species.”
Please someone set me straight if i have got this wrong.
You are right. The Guardian is wrong – though it pains me to say it. WJ has made an excellent first choice of legal issue to pursue.
Patrick Barkham is very good so pity he or his editor let this slip.
Good on WJ for this. Drag these damned neanderthals into court at every opportunity and force them to explain themselves.
You are right. The quote is confused.
This government link explains the differences between General, Class and Individual Licences:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.gov.uk/guidance/wildlife-licences&ved=2ahUKEwjN5Neo84ThAhUvSRUIHbPFBbgQFjAAegQIBxAB&usg=AOvVaw3-F9J5EEm7CfJ5NOBYKVCp
General Licences only apply to a small number of species of birds for specific purposes. As RP’s blog explains, there is no formal application process for the use of General Licences. General Licence ‘applications’ are not assessed, granted or monitored by NE experts. The General Licence system relies entirely on individuals reading the terms of the appropriate licence and complying with those terms.
Begs the question as to how many of those operating under the GL provisions have actually ever seen a copy, let alone having read it. Fully agree that Jay shouldn’t be on it.
Truly excellent. I wish them the very best of luck.
Well done and good luck WJ.
Seems to me NE aren’t fit for purpose. Let’s hope TJ make a huge difference.
This is a great idea as the General licence is really a fiction it is carte blanche for any authorised person to kill any of the species listed and if challenged the they just say I killed it because using one of the provisions and there is no comeback. Even if one approved of the system, which I don’t, there are species there that certainly shouldn’t be Jay and Lesser Black-backed Gull are good examples.
The other thing is we have no idea how many of these species or indeed any “game” species are shot or otherwise killed in this country and clearly this is simply wrong and this is a step towards solving that.
It is definitely time for clarification of the General Licence as well as policing and reporting of the numbers of each bird killed. Jays in particular are not that common outside woodland.
It’s fantastic that at a time when some are brazenly calling for ‘control’ of raptors that there’s this push in the opposite direction to reduce existing killing. The angling community in particular is lobbyling for seals, mergansers, goosanders, cormorants and even otters to be killed. Of course the beaver is currently being slaughtered in some areas and no doubt there are those who’d exterminate it, for the second time, in Scotland – Scotgov plans to give our beavers legal protection from May 1st are being fought by a Tory MSP. Rather than working towards healthier ecosystems that require less and less human intervention the field sports lobby and farming subsidy milkers want more killing to maintain a status quo convenient for them. Funny how I never hear any of those saying we have too many corvids lamenting the persecution that’s stopping the crow eating goshawk from being as widespread as it should be. Excellent stuff WJ, hope the conservation bodies get behind this.
Paul, the one which gets me is the Rook. I live within earshot of a large Rookery which is situated on the land of the worst farmer in Britain – who carries out a shoot every Spring because he thinks they are Carrion Crows which will attack his lambs (due soon, so it will be happening again shortly). I have tried showing him the Rooks gathering on his fields eating literally thousands of Leatherjackets which are decimating his grasslands and barley fields. His response is always the same i.e. “They are crows and they take the eyes out of my lambs when they are being born. What do you expect me to do?” So don’t think it is just the gamekeepers folks, many (but not all) farmers are just as ignorant when it comes to identifying the species on their land.
A Bowland keeper ( Now fortunately long gone from the area and good riddance) used to shoot the flocks of Rooks on the fell in summer, most of which are young birds after caterpillars on the heather because they were crows! Is lambing inside a reasonable alternative to the mass killing of Carrion Crows that occasionally attack lambs being born? Surely misidentification should negate the general licence in both cases Tony?
I can also recall a young keeper being absolutely flabbergasted when a country vicar told the estate that they could not under any circumstances shoot the rookery in the church yard or cemetery. His comment was ” doesn’t he know they are F***ing crows!” I hate rookery shooting and have always found it repugnant, although in the days when the shot youngsters were eaten in pies it could just about be justified I suppose.
I am afraid I am unable to contribute. My own well being is also dependent on crowdfunding. I support this wholeheartedly. Solving complex ecological issues by killing birds is plain stupid. Where I live the small bird population has been decimated and there are very many corvids. The solution is certainly not to kill the crows. Rather to reintroduce hedgerows and persuade folks to stop turning their gardens into decks and car parks. The knee jerk reaction “kill the pest” is far too prevalent in the country, and often incorporates a very toxic masculinity. Legislation that allows indiscriminate killing simply reinforces this attitude. Time to make folks, in particular young men, think rather than react with bloodlust because this is the way things have always been done.