10.06.10
The SGA has cautiously welcomed the introduction to Parliament today of the Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill which updates ancient gaming laws, introduces new deer management policies and laws to prevent invasive non-native species gaining a foothold in Scotland's landscape.
The Bill updates the Deer (Scotland) 1996 Act and includes support for the provision of sector led training for stalkers and others who shoot or supervise the shooting of deer. However previously proposed measures such as the abolition of Close Seasons or changes to legislation on night shooting or driving deer are not included.
On snaring the Bill 's main proposal is to introduce an operator-based accreditation scheme. In preparation for this SGA trainers have been running courses across Scotland, from Sutherland to Dumfriesshire, in order to ensure practitioners will be able to comply with the new legislation.
Introducing the Bill this morning Environment Minister Roseanna Cunningham said: "Scotland's natural environment covers a staggering 95 per cent of our land and contributes around £17 billion to our economy every year.
"Yet some of the laws governing what people can and cannot do in that environment have been unchanged since the 1800s and many more remain ambiguous in a modern age.
"As millions of people enjoy our environment for sport and recreation in ever changing and diverse ways, the laws governing how best to protect our wildlife need to be updated to adapt to modern pressures."
SGA Chairman Alex Hogg commented: "We are pleased that Government listened to our concerns about several of the proposals originally included in the Consultation and have taken our advice on board. We have yet to examine the detail of the Bill but that is now a top priority."
The Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill can be accessed by clicking on the link below.
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/s3/bills/52-WildNatEnv/index.htm