Pheasant shoots facing strict regulation under new plan

Pheasant and partridge shooting could be banned without a licence

Pheasant and partridge shooting could be banned without a licence in Wales under new Welsh government plans.

While shoots on Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) usually need Natural Resources Wales' consent, there is normally little regulation.

NRW has launched a 12-week consultation on the matter.

The British Association of Shooting and Conservation accused the Welsh government of wanting to stop all game shooting.

NRW warned in its consultation that gamebird releases can be harmful, particularly in sensitive locations or at unsustainable levels.

It said the proposed changes would mean bird shoots would "need to be carried out under a licence issued by NRW".

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It insisted it was not a matter of "whether or not shooting live quarry should continue to be allowed in Wales".

NRW's regulation chief, Nadia DeLonghi, said she wanted to create a system that was proportionate and workable.

She said: "We've used the available evidence to consider how best to manage any ecological impacts of gamebird releases without disproportionately compromising the environmental, social, and economic benefits provided by game shooting.

"This is not about stopping gamebird release."

BASC Wales director, Steve Griffiths, claimed the Welsh government had taken "an increasingly toxic view on recreational shooting".

"This current set of proposals are simply the next step towards their endgame of shutting down all shooting in Wales regardless of the consequences for jobs, businesses and conservation.

"This is the thin end of the wedge. The introduction of a ban and licensing regime in Wales presents future governments in Wales and across the UK with an open goal to introduce further restrictions."

Critics have hit out at the Welsh government plan

He said shooting was already heavily regulated.

"There is no evidence that further legislation will provide any further benefits," he said.

Will Morton, of animal rights charity the League Against Cruel Sports, said: "Action to rein in the current free-for-all of non-native gamebirds released in vast numbers into the Welsh countryside is sorely needed.

"We welcome the consultation as an opportunity to bring greater scrutiny to the practice and limit its impact on nature and biodiversity."

He said the the shooting industry was breeding game birds on "an industrial scale" so they could be shot.

"It's an animal welfare issue deserving of greater scrutiny," he said.

The Welsh government declined to comment.