Wild Justice’s petition calling for a ban on driven grouse shooting had reached the 10,000 signature threshold required for a Government response within hours of going live on 13th August 2019.
DEFRA has now finally managed to compose a response (see here) and it lives up (down) to what we’ve come to expect from a wilfully blind Government that’s all about protecting vested interests rather than protecting wildlife and the environment.
Actually, it’s worse than that. The response appears to be a series of unconnected and irrelevant paragraphs, some clearly copied and pasted from previous responses, jumbled together in a failed attempt to appear coherent and intelligent. The end result is nothing of the sort, just a magnificent display of uncritical thinking and a refusal to engage with the actual issues raised.
Here it is in its full glory:
It’s very noticeable that this response statement only mentions driven grouse shooting once. The rest of the time DEFRA refers either to ‘grouse shooting’, ‘shooting activities’, ‘shooting’, and ‘game bird shooting’. This inconsistency can be expected when sentences have been copied and pasted from so many different sources, but it makes it look like DEFRA isn’t paying attention or, more likely, that it simply can’t be arsed and, crucially, misses the point that the petition focuses on driven grouse shooting, not the other types of grouse shooting which, arguably, are far more sustainable, certainly in relation to current management practices for driven grouse shooting.
As usual, there’s simply no acknowledgement that the driven grouse shooting industry is dependent upon wildlife crime, to such an extent that it is having detrimental effects on some raptor species at the population level. We’re not talking about one or two individual birds here, we’re talking about impacts on entire populations, sometimes at a regional level and sometimes at a national level. Ironically, the peregrine, used here by DEFRA as an indicator of success, is one of those species adversely affected on a regional (here) and a national scale (here) by illegal persecution on driven grouse moors. DEFRA tries to underplay this by stating ‘there are still individuals who continue to commit these crimes’. It’s classic wilful blindness, refusing to address the extent of the criminality either because of vested interests or for fear of reprisals (in this case, loss of votes and donations) from those involved.
If this DEFRA statement was an essay written by a university undergraduate, it’d be returned with a low grade and a ‘you need to do better than this or you’ll be booted off the course’ comment. The lack of critical thinking skills is startling. Seriously, why on earth would anyone think this was a useful sentence to include:
‘A report by the UK shooting community concludes that the overall impact of game bird shooting is positive‘.
In a strange way it’s actually quite reassuring that the quality of DEFRA’s response is this bad. It tells us that they (Government and its mates in the grouse shooting industry) haven’t developed any new ideas, can’t deal with the mounting evidence, and refuses to budge from a position of obstinate denial. This should provide us with all the motivation we need to continue applying pressure and gathering support for our movement.
For a more detailed deconstruction of DEFRA’s response, have a look at Mark Avery’s blog here.
Raptor Persecution UK 
Having signed the petition I also got this standard response. I was of course not the least surprised. We won’t get any half way decent answer without a change of government!
A new government may still be steered by outside influences. Change defraud. Nat England all of them.
At least the Scottish Government have not ruled out action, they are just far too slow! If I was in England I’d be tempted to try and organise a juducual review of the response, as much of it is opinion masquerading as facts.
‘A report by the UK shooting community concludes that the overall impact of game bird shooting is positive‘.
They are just taking the piss.
Mark Avery’s analysis is on the nail. The DEFRA response basically says we’re not interested now go away. We know exactly what goes on on Grouse Moors but the’re owned by our pals so “Be Orrrrfff with you, and make it quick” Hopefully the RPPDG will make more progress before they get defunded.
I would go further. Change will be extremely difficult until the bureaucratic system with it’s top echelon of appointments filled by former public school/Oxbridge students, with their already developed and tight knit socio-professional networks, is democratised. The same networks between those and the now career led politicians of a similar background, work in unison to defy both the scientific and ecological communities.
Without root and branch reform of our Government and it’s support mechanisms then extending current or extending existing laws to protect our birds from further persecution will be extremely difficult.
Driven grouse shooting is more of an Elite bonding experience than any form of sport and, as such, will be defended vigorously while the overall threat to our birds of prey and our environment will be minimised by every Government and Civil Service Department involved.
Informing and motivating the public seems to be the way forward while holding their feet to the fire by the intelligent use of the laws that do exist in the courts of our land.
Well said, George.
Utterly pathetic…old boy network is alive and well.
Unfortunately, it just underlines that our entire, supposedly democratic, system is corrupted beyond redemption. That they can shovel out this tawdry cobbled together piece of propaganda as though it has some legitimacy just shows total contempt for the truth and the people who signed the petition.
I wonder why this quote from Kiowa band chief and warrior leader Satank to one GA Custer comes to mind “We have fought you many times ( white invaders) but it brings us no pleasure because you are without honour.”
A system of conservation based solely on economic self interest is hopelessly lopsided. It tends to ignore, and thus eventually to eliminate, many elements in the land community that lack commercial value, but that are essential to its healthy functioning. It assumes, falsely that the economic parts of the biotic clock will function without the uneconomic parts. A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold 1949
WE NEVER LEARN
Expected nothing intelligent from the bunch of morons called politicians
I’m sure that is the same response that I got, from DEFRA, years ago.
Clearly no new thinking.
Doug
I sincerely believe that a number but not all have a vested interest. From those that own or have rights over the moors, game keepers, the guns, beaters, the hotels and suppliers. However, from my limited time in shooting pheasants, which I no longer do; I now shoot with a camera. The guns can be very interesting lot, I have met, police officers of various ranks, both serving and retired, together with councillors, solicitors and magistrates, which are “pillars of our community and should be respected”. The cost of been a gun on a grouse shoot is a long way from been cheap, and can be very difficult getting onto some of shoots, usually comes down to who you know, so favours will be done, and repaid. Not all are corrupt, it tends from what I have observed the small group that are in with the owner and gamekeeper.
Standard BS from DEFRA
like the old saying goes, “He who pays the piper calls the tune” just who does DEFRA work for really.
I had to give up reading the DEFRA statement.
It has all the appearance of someone pulling their jacket on whilst thudding a big manila folder on an intern’s desk at 1645 on a Friday afternoon, with a cheerful “answer that, then you can go home!”