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Natural England have published a bulletin outlining some small changes to the General Licences for wild bird control, GL 40 - 42 as they take responsibility for the licences from Defra for 2026.
GWCT’s head of education Matt Goodall said that Natural England has engaged with GWCT and wider stakeh...
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Written by Henrietta Appleton, GWCT Policy Officer (England)
Over the course of a series of blogs this year I will be considering the current science on peatland management and restoration with a view to challenging some of the ‘accepted truths’. These are limiting our ability to adapt our approa...
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By Alex Keeble, Game & Wildlife Advisor
The GWCT has demonstrated through many years of research that good game management can lead to significant benefits to wildlife. Woodlands managed for pheasants tend to support more songbirds and butterflies than non-shooting woods; this is because game...
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Written by Henrietta Appleton, GWCT Policy Officer
It is with some frustration that I read the news reports on the recent spate of wildfires across the country.
Whilst increasing awareness of the consequences of a wildfire on the landscape and the wildlife it supports (as well as carbon emissions...
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Dear Editor,
Regarding your article on the decline of the wild Atlantic Salmon on the 15 October.
As someone who has worked to research and conserve wild Atlantic salmon for over 30 years, I am enraged, that both national and international governments have allowed our rivers to deteriorate into s...
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By Alastair Leake Director of Policy and the Allerton Project.
There’s a lot of talk about the closure of the Sustainable Farming Incentive scheme. The SFI has not ended. Because the scheme was so good farmers have piled into it enthusiastically and all the money is now committed.
It is good news...
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By Henrietta Appleton, Policy Officer (England)
Defra has announced that it will proceed with the planned changes to the Heather & Grass Burning Regulations 2021 which it consulted on in the Spring/early Summer. This means that the requirement for a licence to burn on deep peat will be exten...
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Written by Ross Macleod, Head of Policy (Scotland)
The Scottish Government’s Natural Environment Bill was introduced to Holyrood in February 2025 and is aimed at protecting Scotland’s natural environment. Stage 1 debate took place on 30th October, with MSPs broadly accepting the general principle...
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Written by Sue Evans, GWCT Policy Wales
As the UK Government announces a common-sense approach to environmental permitting in England, why is a common sense approach not being applied around the management of wildfires on moorland and to reversing biodiversity decline?
New common-sense approach t...
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Welsh Government introduces compulsory housing measures for poultry and captive birds and additional biosecurity requirements for game birds in response to avian influenza
The amended Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) came into force at midnight on Thursday 13 November.
In a statement, Welsh...
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