SumUp denies hunts card payment services
It’s been one blow after another for fox hunters these past couple of years. Struggling to stay afloat, a number of hunts have shut down or amalgamated. And now they have been hit with yet another financial woe: they have been banned from taking card payments at their fundraising events. This is a major victory […]
A ‘nation of animal lovers’, more like a nation of wildlife killers
In the UK, we pride ourselves as being a nation that loves animals. We donate readily to the Dogs Trust or to Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, while 53% of us has a pet. Our pets are protected from abuse under the Animal Welfare Act, and a person can be prosecuted if the animal’s needs […]
World’s tiniest violin plays for shooting industry
Last week Yahoo News reposted a Daily Telegraph puff piece for the shooting industry which ran with the headline, “Gamekeepers face ruin after last-minute change to licences.” Lamenting a normally supine government for actually (finally) recognising the terrible threat of Avian Flu to wild bird populations and that protected areas ought to be – you […]
Gamekeeper Francis Addison convicted in dead goshawks investigation
On the 29th of June, Francis Addison (72) a part-time gamekeeper of South Park, Weeting, pleaded guilty at Norwich Magistrates’ court to NINETEEN charges in connection with a multi-agency raptor persecution investigation led by Suffolk Police, including the possession of five shot Goshawks. As Protect the Wild reported back in January this year, the bodies […]
Natural England’s Tony Juniper: overseeing the devastation of England’s biodiversity
The chair of Natural England (the government’s adviser for the natural environment in England) has hypocritically argued that England “is going to have to work much harder” if it wants to meet biodiversity targets. In his role, Tony Juniper is actively responsible for the loss of biodiversity. The Tories’ biodiversity targets have already been called […]
The government has set out its stall over culling badgers, and it’s not pretty
Environment secretary Thérèse Coffey said that she won’t keep to “artificial deadlines” over ending the badger cull. And her words come just as plans were confirmed for tens of thousands more deaths at the hands of farmers. At the opening of the Royal Cornwall Show, Coffey told the public that she believes there is “no […]
Hedgerows and the Law
Hedgerows and the Law In May 2024 Defra announced The Management of Hedgerows (England) Regulations 2024 which put the baseline for hedgerow management practices into law, providing a consistent approach for their protection across the country. This includes: a 2-metre buffer strip, measured from the centre of a hedgerow, where a green cover must be […]
Avian Flu: RSPB calls for ban on bird releases by shooting industry
“To help limit the catastrophic spread of Avian Influenza, the RSPB is calling for an immediate moratorium on the release of captive-bred gamebirds and Mallards for shooting in the UK this year. The call is for the UK and devolved governments and the shooting industry to take a precautionary approach to limit the spread of […]
Avian Flu forces lockdown of largest pheasant rearing farm in UK
Avian Flu protection zones have been imposed around a massive pheasant and partridge breeding farm in north Powys. The family-owned Bettws Hall Game Farm, near Bettws Cedewain, which describes itself as ‘a market leader in the production of pheasant and partridge chicks and poults in the UK‘, says it raises more than 1.7m pheasant and […]
Time for shooting and hunting to acknowledge the truth about ‘pests’
An article in The Guardian this week headlined, “Lichens, slime moulds and wasps: RHS lists top beneficial wildlife for garden” should be required reading for the shooting and hunting industries. Written by Helena Horton, it comes thirteen months after the same journalist wrote a Guardian article with the headline “‘Planet friendly’: RHS to no longer […]
Northern Ireland: men responsible for fate of badgers have vested interest in cull
Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) is inching closer to culling badgers after it asked companies to submit “expressions of interests to deliver the culling element” of its bovine TB (bTB) strategy. The deadline for applications is today (21 April 2023). The government department said that it will introduce culls in […]
Gruesome footage highlights the criminality of England’s stag hunters
Quantock Staghounds (QSH) is one of the UK’s most brutal hunts. It continually murders Somerset’s stags with impunity, despite being caught on film. Now, recent footage – caught by North Dorset Hunt Sabs – is a stark reminder of just how criminal this hunt really is. The sabs’ footage – which you can view here […]
Natural England has been covertly expanding badger cull areas
The government’s annual badger cull, which began in 2013, has always been shrouded in secrecy. And now Freedom of Information (FOI) responses reveal the extent of Natural England’s underhanded tactics as it murders our beloved species. Environmental journalist Tracy Keeling accessed the FOI requests, and reported her findings in the Canary. She found that since […]
Trespass (to Land) and the Law
Trespass (to Land) and the Law In England and Wales, trespassing is entering – or putting property on – land that belongs to someone else, without their permission (technically “unjustifiable interference with land which is in the immediate and exclusive possession of another”) unless there is: some right of access for the public (for England […]
The CRoW Act 2000
The CRoW (Countryside and Rights of Way) Act 2000 The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (CRoW Act) covers England and Wales and gives a public right of access to land mapped as ‘open country’ (mountain, moor, heath and down) or mapped areas of registered common land shown on official registers kept by the […]
New review shows pheasants are still riddled with lead despite industry promises
A new study reveals that the shooting industry has done almost nothing to reduce lead in shotgun pellets. The finding comes half-way through an industry pledge to voluntarily reduce lead by 2025. The Conservation Evidence Journal published a review on 27 February led by Rhys Green of the Environmental Research Institute and Cambridge University. The […]
Snares and the Law
Snares and the Law Snares are banned in most European countries, but free-running snares are still legal in England and Northern Ireland. Wales passed a ban in summer 2023, and in March 2024 the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill was passed into law in March 2024 making it “an offence to use a snare to trap […]
Stark images of a snared badger highlight the need to ban snares now
A badger was found caught in a snare on the outskirts of a town in Northamptonshire. And images of the creature reveal just how cruel the devices are. On 3 February, Northamptonshire Badger Group said on Facebook that it had spent five hours searching for an injured badger “through fields, brambles and thick hedges”. The […]
In his new TV show, Jeremy Clarkson laments that you can’t shoot or gas badgers
The badger is Britain’s most persecuted animal. It is attacked on many fronts – by the government during its annual badger cull, by badger baiters, and by the fox hunting community. But in his new programme, Clarkson’s Farm, Jeremy Clarkson spouts dangerous lies about the creatures. And now the Badger Trust has hit out at […]
Birds of prey and the Law
Birds of Prey and the Law Birds of prey are widely persecuted on shooting estates (and on some farms) but all species are protected by the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and most (excluding Common Buzzard, Kestrel, and Sparrowhawk) also come under Schedule 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. This means that NO […]
Despite conviction fox killer Ollie Finnegan working with Cheshire Hunt
Huntsman Ollie Finnegan is, perhaps, one of the best examples of criminality in the world of fox hunting. Despite being convicted under the Hunting Act, the Cheshire Hunt continues to employ him to murder foxes. On 4 February 2023, Cheshire Against Blood Sports witnessed the hunt killing a fox, and hunt staff “shoving the fox’s […]
Badgers and the Law
Badgers and the Law Badgers are protected in law by the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 (passed to consolidate law previously contained in the Badgers Act 1973, the Badgers Act 1991 and the Badgers (Further Protection) Act 1991) and so are their setts (setts include entrances, tunnels, and underground chambers). Licences may be granted by […]
Bats and the Law
Bats and the Law All bat species and their roosts are legally protected in the UK, by both domestic and international legislation including the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) – though as of 2023 the government is discussing removing the specific protection of all wildlife (including bats) currently provided by the EU’s Habitats […]
Nesting Birds, Nests and the Law
Nesting birds, Nests and the Law Under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 (WCA, the primary legislation which protects animals, plants and habitats in the UK) it is: ‘an offence intentionally to kill, injure or take any wild bird, or take or destroy their eggs or nest, or damage a nest, while that nest is […]
York: Fox fatally injured in illegal snare
The RSPCA is appealing for information following the discovery of a fox caught in a snare in York. And it’s a grim reminder that these “awful” devices are everywhere. A number of news reports said the young fox was discovered in a hedgerow near Rye Walk, in the north-west of the city. Following his discovery, […]
BREAKING: Wales one step closer to ban on snare use
The Welsh Senedd just announced it is carrying forwards a plan to prohibit the use of snares. On 27 January, the Welsh Senedd’s Economic, Trade and Rural Affairs Committee published its Stage 1 Report on its upcoming Agricultural Bill. The 116-page document covers many subjects related to the future of agricultural legislation in the nation. […]
DARTMOOR: camping ban and pheasant shooting
On Saturday 21 January, Protect the Wild joined more than 3,000 people marching in protest on Dartmoor after a pheasant-shooting millionaire took action to prevent wild camping. Hedge fund manager Alexander Darwall, who owns the 4,000-acre Blachford Estate on Dartmoor, brought the case against Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA). The high court ruled in his […]
Review into policing of hunts in North Wales finds focus on ‘public disorder’
A recently published review reveals the complexities of policing the Hunting Act in North Wales. And it shows that it’s high time for new legislation. On 12 January, Glyndwr University’s Social Inclusion Research Institute (Cyfiawnder) published a long-awaited review into policing of the Hunting Act in North Wales. As Protect the Wild previously covered, the […]
Why are you opposed to lead shot?
Why is Protect the Wild opposed to lead shot? Lead is a serious pollutant. Due to its high toxicity, most releases of lead into the environment are strictly regulated in Europe (e.g. see AMEC 2012). Here in the UK, lead was banned from water pipes decades ago, from paint in 1992, and finally fully banned […]
One ‘kind’ message led a pub to take a stand against hunting
A Powys pub has chosen not to support hunting. The pub said the decision came after it had received a “kind and non-abusive” message. And it’s the latest in a string of decisions that increasingly isolate the hunting industry. The Raven Inn based in Welshpool, Powys, said on 19 December that it “will not be […]
Pain, fear and hypothermia: the ‘agonising reality’ for animals caught in snares this winter
Temperatures have dropped significantly in the UK, with many areas seeing thick snow. In these current conditions, you would think that gamekeepers would be deterred from setting fox snares. Unfortunately, wildlife monitors and members of the public are still coming across them. If an animal is trapped in a snare in sub-zero temperatures, their pain […]
Avian Flu: is the government serious about protecting wild birds?
Avian flu is spreading fast: Protect the Wild wonders whether the government is really serious about protecting wild birds, not just poultry. Avian Flu, or (HPAI) H5N1, is a highly contagious viral disease affecting the respiratory, digestive and/or nervous system of many species of birds. A disease originating in East Asia, Avian Flu infected chickens […]
Badger Baiting
Badger Baiting At a glance Badger baiting is a cruel and secretive bloodsport which, although illegal, is prolific in Britain. Badger baiting usually takes place in the winter months, between November and March when sows are pregnant. Across the UK, hundreds of men (typically connected with hunts and known as terriermen) travel to badger setts […]
Grey Partridge
Facts about Grey Partridge Scientific name: Perdix perdix Bird Family: Pheasants and partridges UK conservation status: Red At a glance UK resident, long-term breeding population decline. Rapid population crashes over such large areas point clearly to large-scale rather than local problems. Despite Red-listing in 2021, Grey Partridge can still be legally shot in England, Scotland […]
Geese
Facts about Geese At a glance Britain is internationally-important for wintering geese. Thirteen species have been recorded, but just three species breed here regularly. Shooting lobbyists are constantly trying to increase the number of geese species that can be shot. Of the thirteen species of geese which have been recorded in Britain, several are rare […]
Bat facts
Facts about British Bats Scientific name: Chiroptera At a glance Seventeen bat species breed in the UK, but many are declining. Declines in bat populations mirror declines in the health of our environment. All bats and their roosts have full legal protection. The only true flying (rather than gliding) mammals, there are more than 1,400 […]
What is the ‘research and observation’ loophole used to hunt deer?
England has three remaining staghound packs, two of which claim they carry out ‘research and observation’ as a cover to continue chasing and murdering deer. This is a smokescreen. But it’s permitted thanks to a glaring loophole in the Hunting Act. Schedule 1.9 of the Hunting Act is commonly known as the “research and observation […]
Charities warn badger cull could lead to local extinctions
Charities fear badger cull could lead to local extinction. Charities have warned that going ahead with the badger cull again this year could place badgers at risk of “local extinction” in parts of England and have called for a suspension of the programme. The Badger Trust is leading a call to immediately suspend the […]
Speaking up for badgers at the Court of Appeal
Speaking up for badgers at the Court of Appeal On July 21st I posted a podcast (Badger Culls, Biodiversity, Birds, and the High Court) with ecologists Tom Langton and Dominic Woodfield which looked at the background to a challenge they were taking to the Court of Appeal on July 26th (yesterday). The conversation was complex […]
Hedgehog numbers are in serious decline
Hedgehog numbers are in serious decline It’s Hedgehog Awareness Week, a time of the year to celebrate our favourite spiky mammal. But it’s also a time to reflect on the fact that their numbers are in serious decline. It’s no longer a common sight to see these shy little creatures moving slowly through our gardens. […]
