Tag: scottish parliament

As many of you know, the Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs & Islands Committee is currently taking evidence from stakeholders as part of the Committee’s Stage 1 scrutiny of the Wildlife & Muirburn (Scotland) Bill.

For new blog readers, this is the Bill that has been introduced by the Scottish Government in response to the recommendations made in the 2019 Werritty Review and is designed to bring in licensing for grouse moor management and attempt to put an end to the illegal killing of birds of prey on grouse moors.

The first evidence session took place on 31st May 2023 and the Committee heard from members of the Scottish Government Bill Team, led by senior civil servant Hugh Dignon.

It was a relatively straightforward evidence session, with no big surprises and it provided a useful insight into how legislation is drafted, if that’s your thing.

Although I’ve got to say, the quality of some of the questions from some members of the Committee revealed an exasperating level of ignorance. Whether that was feigned or genuine, I’ll leave you to decide.

For example, Committee Member Jim Fairlie MSP (SNP):

“What evidence is there to justify the need for additional regulation of grouse moors? Has an on-going link been established between grouse moor management and raptor persecution?“

And from Committee Member Rachael Hamilton MSP (Scottish Conservatives):

“What evidence do you have to suggest that raptor persecution and grouse moors are connected?“

It should be noted that both MSPs are known to support the game-shooting industry. Mr Fairlie recently sponsored a Parliamentary event for the godawful Gift of Grouse campaign group (which raised eyebrows given the timing of the event coinciding with his role on the Committee supposedly independently scrutinising the grouse moor bill – see here), so he’s probably not as ignorant of the issues as his question suggests. Rachael Hamilton was recently in hot water as it was claimed she ‘failed to declare an interest in blood sports’ whilst scrutinising the recent Hunting with Dogs Bill (see here) and she’s also attended events and meetings with gamekeepers (e.g. here) so she, too, should be very well informed on the link between grouse moor management and illegal raptor persecution. Fortunately, there are others on the Committee with different views and experience.

I’ve got to hand it to Hugh Dignon, who managed to suppress any hint of incredulity, and calmly explained the extensive available evidence linking grouse moor management to illegal raptor persecution (i.e. bloody decade’s worth of the stuff!) and said he would happily provide this material to the Committee in writing.

You can watch the first evidence session on Scottish Parliament TV (archived video here, starts at 10:59:07) and you can read the transcript here (starts on page 40):

The second evidence session (in a series of four) takes place tomorrow, starting at 9am in the Fairfax Somerville Room at Holyrood. The Committee will first hear evidence from members of the Grouse Moor Management (Werritty) Review, and then take evidence from a range of stakeholders on sections 1-3 of the Bill (glue traps), sections 4-5 (wildlife traps) and section 8 (SSPCA powers).

Here are the individuals invited to give evidence at this particular session:

That should be interesting! You can watch live on Scottish Parliament TV (here) or watch the video archive shortly afterwards via the same website. The official transcript will be available several days after the meeting and I’ll post it on this blog when it comes out.

The third session, scheduled for 21st June 2023, will hear from the RSPB and the REVIVE coalition for grouse moor reform, amongst others, about grouse moor licensing and muirburn licensing.

The fourth and final session, scheduled for 28th June, will hear evidence from Mairi Gougeon, the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands.

Press release from REVIVE coalition partner League Against Cruel Sports (5th June 2023):

ANIMAL WELFARE CHARITY RELEASES FOOTAGE EXPOSING THE GRUESOME REALITY OF SNARING

Scottish Parliament urged to use Wildlife Management and Muirburn Bill to ban cruel traps

The League Against Cruel Sports Scotland has released footage exposing the grim reality of snaring. The footage shows a dead Badger with a snare around its abdomen just a short distance from a stink pit full of rotting animal carcasses surrounded by thin wire snares.

The charity says the footage highlights the urgent need for a ban on snaring under the new Wildlife Management and Muriburn (Scotland) Bill which last week began its stage 1 evidence sessions. Although perfectly legal, the footage illustrates that even when used lawfully, snares inflict severe cruelty and suffering.

The video footage was filmed just last week on moorland near Coulter, South Lanarkshire by the League’s field investigators. Commenting on what is seen in the film, Robbie Marsland, Director of the League Against Cruel Sports, Scotland said:

“Although we can’t be clear of the exact circumstances surrounding this Badger’s death, what is in absolutely no doubt is that this animal suffered a slow, painful and traumatic death.

“The last hours and possibly days of this creature’s life would have been spent in fear and agony as it tried to free itself from a primitive, indiscriminate trap before eventually succumbing to its injuries.

“No amount of regulation will stop snares from being cruel and indiscriminate traps which is why only a ban will stop animals suffering. This footage, which shows a scenario which is perfectly legal under the existing regulations, proves that regulating snares is simply regulating cruelty.”

The Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs and Islands Committee is currently taking evidence on the Scottish Government’s proposed wildlife management legislation. Robbie Marsland added:

“The Scottish Government’s Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill is an opportunity to rid our countryside of these deadly traps once and for all. The Government has explored this issue several times in recent years but always stopped short of an outright ban. Now is the opportunity to be bold, and put animal welfare first.

“The scope of the Bill has the potential to end a number of unpalatable practices which go on in our countryside to sustain sport shooting such as the use of stink pits to lure unsuspecting animals into deadly traps. This type of activity has no place in modern society and we hope as the Bill progresses and undergoes further scrutiny these opportunities won’t be missed.”

Scotland currently has the most stringent regulations on snare use, but despite this, protected species such as Badgers are regularly caught and killed by snares. Dr Elspeth Srirling from Scottish Badgers said:

“Badgers are strong animals and fight to escape, resulting in severe injuries where the wire noose cuts through skin and muscle tissue and into the body cavity leaving the badger to endure prolonged agonies, pain and a lingering death. Scottish Badgers has attended several incidents in recent years where multiple snares were used year after year to trap Badgers.

“Snare-users have had decades to demonstrate a willingness to do the right thing by avoiding positioning snares where Badgers are present, but they stubbornly resist. Banning their use and manufacture outright is the only option.”

A recent field study of ground predator control by the League found that 57,000 killing devices are deployed each day in Scotland representing the equivalent of over 10,000,000 active trapping and snaring days per year, with nearly half of animals killed being non-target species such as Hedgehogs, Dippers and Mistle Thrush.

ENDS

The Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs & Islands Committee has announced the timetable for hearing stakeholder evidence as part of its Stage 1 scrutiny of the Wildlife & Muirburn (Scotland) Bill.

For new blog readers, this is the Bill that has been introduced by the Scottish Government in response to the recommendations made in the 2019 Werritty Review and is designed to bring in licensing for grouse moor management and attempt to put an end to the illegal killing of birds of prey on grouse moors.

The Committee hasn’t yet publicised who has been called to give evidence (other than the Scottish Government Bill Team on 31st May, members of the Werritty review group on 14th June and the Cabinet Secretary Mairi Gougeon on 28th June) but presumably other contributors have been selected from amongst those who submitted written evidence during the Committee’s recent review period (see here).

The evidence sessions will be held in public and will be live-streamed on the Scottish Parliament’s TV channel. Recordings will be available for those unable to watch live proceedings.

The first evidence session will take place this Wednesday (Scottish Government Bill Team, which includes Hugh Dignon, Head of Wildlife Management Unit, Leia Fitzgerald, Team Leader, Wildlife Legislation Team, Norman Munro, solicitor, and Sam Turner, Team Leader, Wildlife Management Team) and you’ll be able to watch it live here. (Search for the link to the Rural Affairs Committee).

UPDATE 13th June 2023: Transcript & video from first evidence session available here

Last month I wrote about how the Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs & Islands Committee had put out a public call for views in advance of this committee beginning its Stage 1 scrutiny of the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill – see here.

This is the draft Bill that has been introduced by the Scottish Government in response to the recommendations made in the 2019 Werritty Review and is designed to bring in licensing for grouse moor management and put an end to the illegal killing of birds of prey on grouse moors.

The Stage 1 scrutiny of the Bill is due to be completed by 6 October 2023 after the Scottish Parliament recently agreed to a motion to this effect (see here).

The Rural Affairs & Islands Committee’s call for views closed on 5th May 2023 and according to a recent article in The Scotsman (unfortunately behind a paywall), over 4,000 responses were received, which was described as ‘staggering’.

The information gleaned by The Scotsman apparently came from Finlay Carson MSP (Scottish Conservatives, Dumfries & Galloway) who also happens to be the Convenor of the Committee scrutinising the Bill. Mr Carson was reportedly speaking at a GWCT-hosted grouse symposium in Perthshire on 5th May and his words were reported by Scotsman journalist Katherine Hay as follows:

“I checked the replies this morning and there has been more than 4,000 responses; 99 per cent of which have come from individuals. That is a staggering response“.

The Scotsman reports, ‘To put the figure into perspective, Mr Carson spoke about the Hunting with Dogs Bill, which made it an offence to hunt a wild animal with a dog. The Bill was passed in January and Mr Carson said drew about 2,000 replies’.

Mr Carson was then further quoted in the article:

“What we have now is a draft of unproven, and, in my view, unnecessary legislation, which could have the effect of reversing traditional conservation efforts, and to curtail the ability of land managers to effectively protect Scotland’s biodiversity and support rural livelihoods. There is a misunderstanding of the contribution grouse moors make to biodiversity“.

Mr Carson is entitled to hold a view, of course, and it’s really no surprise what his view is. However, I’d question how wise it was for him, in the influential position of the Rural Affairs Committee Convenor, to express such a partial view, no matter who his audience, whilst the serious matter of Parliamentary scrutiny of the Bill is underway.

The Committee will be calling forward various organisations to give evidence before summer recess begins on 1st July 2023 and these sessions should be available to view on Scottish Parliament TV. Given Mr Carson’s early show of hands, his performance as Convenor will be closely observed by many of us.

Other members of this cross-party committee include:

Beatrice Wishart MSP, Deputy Convenor (Scottish Liberal Democrats)

Karen Adam MSP (SNP)

Alasdair Allan MSP (SNP)

Ariane Burgess (Scottish Greens)

Jim Fairlie MSP (SNP)

Christine Grahame MSP (SNP)

Rhoda Grant (Scottish Labour)

Rachael Hamilton MSP (Scottish Conservatives)

At the end of March, Scotland’s new First Minister Humza Yousaf appointed a new Government Cabinet, which involved some reshuffling and the addition of some new faces.

I’ve been waiting for the Government to announce the new responsibilities for each Cabinet Secretary and each junior Minister before I blogged about the changes. Those responsibilities have now been published on the Scottish Government’s website (here).

Bizarrely, the role of Environment Minister seems to have been dropped.

Up until Yousaf’s election in March, Mairi McAllan MSP had served as the Minister for Environment and Land Reform since 2021, and was responsible for introducing the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill in March.

Following Yousaf’s election and subsequent Cabinet reshuffle, Mairi McAllan was deservedly promoted and now serves as the Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Just Transition. Her new responsibilities, although aligned to her previous portfolio, are now quite different:

Cabinet Secretary McAllan will be supported by three junior Ministers:

*Minister for Transport – Kevin Stewart MSP

*Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy & Biodiversity – Lorna Slater MSP

*Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel & Tenants’ Rights – Patrick Harvie MSP

The Land Reform portfolio appears to have been transferred to Mairi Gougeon. Prior to the reshuffle, Mairi Gougeon was the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands. Her new title is Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands. Her new, expanded portfolio is listed as follows:

Surprisingly, she does not appear to be specifically supported by any junior Ministers, and hence the position of Environment Minister no longer exists.

What does this mean in real terms? Well that remains to be seen. The good news is that Mairi Gougeon is already highly experienced in the portfolio areas on which this blog focuses – indeed, as a former Environment Minister, it was Mairi Gougeon who announced in 2020 that the Scottish Government intended to introduce a licensing scheme for grouse shooting in response to the recommendations made in the Werritty Review (see here).

Mairi is well-versed on the issue of raptor persecution, having previously acted as the Scottish Parliament’s Species Champion for hen harriers, enthusiastically offering her support for this species by way of a parliamentary debate, speaking at Hen Harrier Day, and accompanying licensed members of the Scottish Raptor Study Group on field visits to hen harrier sites (here and here).

She is an accomplished and bright politician and I look forward to her engagement with the grouse moor licensing Bill as it progresses through Parliament.

UPDATE 13th June 2023: New Environment Minister appointed to Scottish Government (here)

Further to this morning’s news (here) that the Scottish Government has introduced its long-promised grouse shooting bill, formally known as the Wildlife Management & Muirburn (Scotland) Bill, the game-shooting industry is seething.

Probably because the penny has finally dropped that the game is up. Despite years of expensive and extensive lobbying, their arguments haven’t been sufficiently persuasive and their posturing hasn’t been sufficiently convincing. As a result, the Scottish Government has produced draft legislation that, if passed, will bring wide-sweeping reforms, none of which the shooting industry wants, nor until this morning, believed would happen.

This is where the fight really starts as that Bill makes its way through the Scottish Parliament.

Here are the furious responses of Scottish Land & Estates, Scottish Gamekeepers Association, BASC, and Countryside Alliance:

Further to this morning’s news (here) that the Scottish Government has introduced its long-promised grouse shooting bill, formally known as the Wildlife Management & Muirburn (Scotland) Bill, REVIVE, the coalition for grouse moor reform has published the following press statement in response:

REVIVE coalition urges Parliament to be bold on new wildlife Bill

Scottish Government’s draft Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill marks biggest intervention in land management for generations

The Scottish Government has today published its draft Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill. The Bill has been introduced to protect the environment and tackle the persecution of birds of prey. It is expected to significantly change the way in which large areas of Scotland are managed, making it one of the biggest interventions in this area for generations.

Campaign Manager for REVIVE, Max Wiszniewski said: “The proposed Bill is a major intervention in land management that regulates destructive practices through licensing, instead of stopping them.

“Intensively managed grouse moors are unnatural monocultures that are burned and stripped of competing wildlife so more grouse can be shot for sport. By creating a circle of destruction around huge areas of our land, biodiversity and more diverse economic opportunities are missed for Scottish people and communities.

“With a new First Minister on the horizon, as the Bill progresses through Parliament, we hope it will be even bolder and braver to meet the expectations of the Scottish people.”

The Bill follows a review into grouse moor management led by Professor Werritty, the findings of which were published in December 2019. A year later the Scottish Government committed to introduce measures which will hold land managers far more accountable for their activities.

The Bill proposes to strictly regulate the use of muirburn, the controlled burning of vegetation, on peatland as well as ending raptor persecution. It also includes measures to ensure grouse moors are managed sustainably, to ban the use of glue traps for rodents and tighten regulations for the use of other types of wildlife traps.

Robbie Marlsand, Director of the League Against Cruel Sports Scotland, a REVIVE coalition partner added: “When it comes to grouse shooting, this Bill appears well intentioned but kicks a couple of contentious cans down the road. Snares are primitive, cruel and indiscriminate. This Bill should remove them from the Scottish countryside – with no ifs and no buts.

“The impact of this Bill on killing grouse for sport will also depend much on the content of a yet to be written code of conduct that shooting estates must comply with. Only when that is finalised will we be able to appreciate the potential impact of this legislation. For example, hundreds of thousands of animals are killed each year so that there can be more grouse to shoot for fun and it’s not yet known if this Bill will change that.

“Killing any animal for entertainment is repugnant to the majority of people in Scotland. We therefore welcome any incremental steps that will make it more difficult to do.”

ENDS

BREAKING NEWS…..

This morning the Scottish Government has introduced its long-promised grouse shooting bill, formally known as the Wildlife Management & Muirburn (Scotland) Bill.

This draft legislation is a direct result of the game-shooting industry’s failure to stop illegally killing birds of prey on many Scottish grouse moors. That was the trigger, and there are also now other aspects to the Bill that are an attempt to tackle other poorly-regulated aspects of unsustainable grouse moor management.

The Bill contains provisions to:

• Ban the use and purchase of glue traps and introduce licensing and training requirements for certain other types of wildlife traps;
• Introduce a licensing regime for land used for the shooting of red grouse;
• License all muirburn; and
• Introduce enabling powers to allow the Scottish Ministers to extend the role of inspectors appointed under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 to investigate certain wildlife offences.

As it has only just been published, I haven’t had time to read it properly or analyse its contents. I’ll comment further in due course.

Scottish Government has provided this overview:

Now the Bill has finally been introduced, this is how it will progress through Parliament over the coming months. There will be plenty of opportunity for comment on, and amendments to, this Bill.

Here are the all important documents:

The Bill, as introduced:

Scottish Government’s Explanatory Notes:

Scottish Government’s Policy Memorandum (i.e. explaining why the Bill has been created):