November

Over the next few weeks Defra will be consulting with stakeholders about their plans for licensing gamebird releasing on or near protected sites in 2021. 

Last week the campaign group Wild Justice had to withdraw its legal action in relation to gamebird releases because Defra had found a legal solution to their concerns. However, Wild Justice then decided to describe this as a “victory” and, luckily for them, journalists at the Guardian, Telegraph, Times and the Mail appear not to have checked what Defra had actually said here.

It would appear the legal team at Defra are the real winners – they have avoided costly legal action and significant disruption to those providing the habitat that game management delivers.