1/7/2025

Driven Grouse Shooting debate: recognising the science

Many readers will be aware of the recent scrutiny facing grouse shooting. At the start of the year Wild Justice once again launched a petition calling for the ban of driven grouse shooting, and in May this petition gained the 100,000 signatures necessary for the topic to be debated by Parliament. Yesterday evening MPs gathered in Westminster Hall to debate the issue.

Fourteen MPs from four political parties and regions across the UK attended alongside the Minister of State for DEFRA, Daniel Zeichner MP, to discuss the petition and their views on the topic. The majority argued against a ban and cited the scientific evidence showing the benefits of grouse moor management to biodiversity, flood risk mitigation, peatland restoration, and wildfire risk mitigation.

John Lamont MP opened the debate and reassured colleagues he had spoken with several groups on both side of the topic. He reminded attendees that this petition was the third raised by Wild Justice on the topic, and stated that while he recognised the strength of feeling on the topic, he wanted to “probe the validity of many of their conclusions” and was “pleased to have the opportunity today to set the record straight on the realities of grouse shooting”.

A number of MPs referenced the fact that grouse moors contribute significantly to both the local and national economy, sustain rural jobs and small businesses, and support tourism and wider associated industries. Several members also directly challenged the suggestion that grouse shooting is “economically insignificant”, pointing to the circa 3,000 full-time equivalent jobs and the millions of pounds generated from grouse moors, asking where that funding would come from if grouse shooting was banned.

GWCT was particularly reassured to see members for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk, Richmond and Northallerton, Thirsk and Malton, Strangford, Mid Buckinghamshire, and Keighley and Ilkley bringing GWCT science to the debate. These MPs helped to highlight the wide biodiversity supported by grouse moor management, including species like merlin, hen harriers and black grouse alongside wader species of conservation concern like lapwing, curlew, and golden plover. Several of our studies were referenced during the session, including the case study on Berwyn SPA, our recent return to the Uplands Predation Experiment, the comparison of managed and unmanaged moors for waders, and the Langholm Project. Additionally, we were delighted that former Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP, highlighted that “a recent study by the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust in Northumberland reveals the devastating ecological impact on plover, snipe, lapwing and curlew populations of the withdrawal of predator control carried out by moor owners”.

In addition, we were pleased to see members recognise that wildlife crimes against raptors are committed only by a minority, whose actions do not reflect the wider community that takes great pride in the wildlife they support. GWCT has always, and will continue to condemn any form of illegal disturbance or killing of raptors and other wildlife crimes, and welcomes the additional funding the DEFRA Minister is providing to the National Wildlife Crime Unit in 2025-26.

The debate concluded with acknowledgement of the range of views, and reiteration that the Government has no plans to ban driven grouse shooting given its contribution to the environment, economy, and local communities.

Watch the debate or read the full debate transcript.

Comments

Grouse shooting

at 14:47 on 01/07/2025 by Robert hales

Moors managed for considerable cost are and benefited by considerable variety of wildlife. We cannot justify feeding excess amounts of predatory or introducing more to eradicate them. We have to think logically with compassion for lesser smaller species.

Driven Grouse Debate...

at 14:29 on 01/07/2025 by Pete Buckingham

So wild Justice's third attempt dismally failed, perhaps they should be charged with wasting MP's time (and taxpayers money 'expenses' ) maybe they should just go and glue their red faces to a grouse moor! 🤔

Grouse Shooting

at 14:07 on 01/07/2025 by Mark Slim

Well done GWCT, CA and BASC - you worked together on this and have won again. And you should win always as these people will go again - their minds are addled and closed to anything except their complete misunderstanding of the facts and loathing of anyone they perceive as rich who may shoot. Benefits to nature and grouse are of nil interest to them……..or if they are, they suffer from complete confusion as to how to proceed for the best.

Driven Grouse Debate...

at 13:57 on 01/07/2025 by Pete Buckingham

So wild Justice's third attempt dismally failed, perhaps they should be charged with wasting MP's time (and taxpayers money 'expenses' ) maybe they should just go and glue their red faces to a grouse moor! 🤔

Grouse Shooting Debate

at 13:06 on 01/07/2025 by Paul Gray

Good to see the GWCT and MPs backing the sport and highlighting the many positive contributions it makes to the countryside. Encouragingly, the science supports this too, consistently showing that wildlife thrives better on managed grouse moors than on unmanaged ones. The challenge we face now is similar to that seen across the pond: when one approach fails, opponents simply pivot and try another angle. For many anti-shooting advocates, the hope was that banning lead would deal a fatal blow. Fortunately for us and unfortunately for them while it’s certainly inconvenient, it’s far from the death knell of country sports. That said, we cannot afford to rest on our laurels. We must remain vigilant, anticipate the next line of attack, and be ready to defend our sport robustly, and credibly. As someone else wrote in the comments Unity is also a factor and as a group in spite of differences we need to be unified against Packham and his ilk.

Grouse shooting debate

at 12:38 on 01/07/2025 by mr. Robert Findlay

Well done the GWCT and other organisations that provided the science and the facts in defending driven grouse shooting. However there will be other disputes ahead for our organisations to be prepared and have the data and facts in order that we do not allow others to own the narrative with their own evidence that may damage other species we take a sustainable harvest

Wild justice/Driven Grouse shooting.

at 12:31 on 01/07/2025 by Paul mallen

Surely after this latest embarrassing debacle for Wild Justice, which is their third attempt to get Driven Grouse shooting banned, each with the same result! It is now time for real conservation organisations inc GWCT, CA, BASC et al, to put pressure on Parliament to refuse Wild justice any further parliamentary time debating this issue? Plainly they are vexatious complainants.

Grouse shooting debate

at 12:18 on 01/07/2025 by David Tomlinson

Some excellent contributions to the debate by MPs from all parties, with the notable exception of Labour left-winger Olivia Blake. However, she's not so much bothered about grouse shooting as the fact that "Just 1% of the population owns over half the land in England, and nowhere is that feudal pattern more evident than in our uplands, where vast moorlands remain in the hands of a privileged minority".

Grouse Shooting

at 12:14 on 01/07/2025 by Nick Musgrave

The debate would appear to have gone very well. Well done everybody!! Was Wild Justice represented !?!

Proposed Grouse shooting ban

at 12:06 on 01/07/2025 by Patrick Cannings

Absolutely delighted to hear that the proposed ban will not happen. I don’t shoot Grouse- couldn’t remotely afford to, but I participate in rough shooting. Any threat to one part of countryside activities is a threat to all.

Grouse shooting

at 12:03 on 01/07/2025 by Thomas Reed

Well done Gwct,a case well put,wild justice really are making no case at all,it's a pity that the BBC give Packham a platform, hopefully it will come to people s attention what a decitfull person he is.thank you for looking after our wildlife and countryside.

Grouse shooting

at 12:03 on 01/07/2025 by Thomas Reed

Well done Gwct,a case well put,wild justice really are making no case at all,it's a pity that the BBC give Packham a platform, hopefully it will come to people s attention what a decitfull person he is.thank you for looking after our wildlife and countryside.

Grouse shooting debate

at 12:02 on 01/07/2025 by Paul Alabaster

For the third time logic and science has prevailed over ffake news and bigotry. The sooner that wild justice understands how I'll conceived are their arguments and that spinning lies and half truths to their followers will mot not win the day. The dreadful wild fires we are witnessing make the arguments for well managed moors even more obvious.. The argument for banning grouse shooting and 'Re-wilding, planting thousands of trees etc has gone up in smoke

Grouse moors benefit people and biodiversity is thereby conserved.

at 11:54 on 01/07/2025 by Prof Ian R Swingland

Biodiversity is disappearing everywhere especially where local communities do not benefit from it and its conservation. If they benefit they’ll take care of the wildlife and their environment.

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