Double Victory For Game Farmers
10 February 2011
The approval yesterday by the Scottish Parliament of the Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds Reared for Sporting Purposes in Scotland marks a double victory, says the Game Farmers’ Association (GFA).
“We now have near-identical codes for game rearing in Scotland, England and Wales and each of them says the right thing,” said Jonathan Crow, GFA Chairman.
“It is a far cry from the position last summer when the dying Labour Government passed an unworkable code for England and it looked as if the devolved countries could each end up with a different code, threatening confusion and chaos.”
Jonathan Crow said that coordinated lobbying by the GFA, the Countryside Alliance, the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation and the Country Land and Business Association, with factual support from the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, had achieved two significant victories:
First, persuading the incoming Government last year to withdraw and revise Labour’s flawed code for England, an unprecedented move for any Government code that had already been approved and was simply ‘lying before’ Parliament for its final 40 days.
Secondly, securing identical codes for all three countries, regarded as essential to clear understanding and a level economic playing field. The only significant differences between the codes are in references they make to parent legislation, none of which is of practical relevance from a game rearing point of view.
“This is an exceptional result,” said Jonathan Crow, Chairman of the GFA, “and I would like to pay tribute to all our colleagues in other organisations who helped us. The final codes are sensible and practical and will help take gamebird welfare to a higher plane. They also imply Government recognition and acceptance of gamebird rearing and release in all three home nations, making this a truly important achievement for everyone who shoots.”
Welcoming the code, Ross Montague, Director of the Scottish Countryside Alliance (SCA) commented, "Game farmers in Scotland work to the highest standards. The SCA welcomes the fact that the Scottish Government's new Code of Practice for the Welfare of Gamebirds is based on sound evidence and the sensible principles. We are also pleased that the new Scottish code is essentially the same as codes introduced last year in England and Wales, as this will ensure the highest gamebird welfare across the whole of Britain whilst also ensuring a level playing field for Scottish game farmers." The new codes will apply from this season on to everyone who rears gamebirds for sport. Failure to follow the relevant code is not an offence in itself but can be relied upon by the courts as tending to establish liability for having committed an offence. The codes are available on Government websites.Date Added: February 10th 2011