2023

The GWCT is delighted that the headline of the EFRA report following its soil health inquiry is that government should take soil health as seriously as it does our other critical assets of water and air.

In a recent newsletter, the campaigning group Wild Justice questioned why Defra had sought advice from GWCT in relation to General Licence GL43 - the licensing mechanism for gamebird releasing on or near some protected sites.

It is very difficult to come to terms with the Environment Minister Gillian Martin MSP’s decision to ban all types of snares in Scotland given the resulting prospects for rural management and biodiversity. Soul-destroying even.

The Welsh Government held their biennial Taste Wales event on 25-26 October, designed to promote the food and drink producers in Wales to a wider, even global, audience.

An update on policy from the GWCT Scotland Team. 

Using the term ‘killing’ rather than ‘management’ would not be my choice when discussing the merits of removing one species to protect another. But I chose it here as it refers to the headings of two recent articles in the Guardian that demonstrate the value of control. Both epitomise the challenge that conservation has in addressing public values and attitudes towards the management of pests, invasive species and native predators.

GWCT Policy Officer Henrietta Appleton gives an update from the GWCT Policy Team.

The pressing need to respond to global climate change and biodiversity loss is undoubtedly driving a large part of our Scottish policy work this year, with government consultations, draft legislation, parliamentary evidence sessions and more coming our way.