Quango’s cull of beavers was unlawful, rules judge
BEAVER culls authorised by a Scottish Government agency have been deemed unlawful following a court ruling.
Trees for Life had sought a judicial review claiming NatureScot is breaking the law by failing to make the killing of beavers a last resort when land management is required.
The charity is calling for the protected species to be relocated to other parts of Scotland rather than culled.
A Court of Session judge has now ruled that by not issuing written reasons for granting licences to kill beavers, NatureScot has been unlawful. In a written judgment published yesterday, Lady Carmichael said: ‘The first respondent [NatureScot] has a general practice of issuing licences without giving reasons for doing so.
‘In approaching matters on the basis that it has no duty to give reasons for granting a licence, the first respondent has erred in law.’
The court ruled NatureScot must set out openly and fully the reasons why it believes any future licence to kill beavers should be granted.
Out of the five complaints made by Trees for Life considered by the court, four were rejected.
Lady Carmichael added that she was ‘not satisfied’ with some arguments put forward by Trees for Life about NatureScot’s ‘generalised unlawful practices’, adding, ‘in a number of instances their [Trees for Life] criticisms are misconceived’.
Alan McDonnell, Trees for Life conservation manager, said: ‘The Scottish Government must take this ruling seriously.
‘It means that from here on in there can be no more rubber-stamphave ing of licensed killing of beavers. This is an important victory for accountability and transparency.’
He said relocating beavers rather than culling them will boost biodiversity, help tackle the climate breakdown and create wildlife tourism opportunities.
Robbie Kernahan, NatureScot’s director of sustainable growth, said: ‘We have been successful on all points of law except that we should issued written reasons with each licence to explain why it had been granted.
‘Most importantly, the criticism of our underlying licensing decisions was rejected by the court and this does not affect the legality of any acts carried out under the affected licences.
‘We have been working with partners for 25 years to bring back beavers. We will continue to listen to and respond to all those involved.
‘In specific situations where beavers pose a risk of serious damage to farmland or where they cause a public health and safety concern, we issue species control licences.’
‘Take ruling seriously’