Crime unit praises the NGO

The National Wildlife

Crime Unit (NWCU) has requested full details of the RSPB’S claims that raptor persecution incidents have increased during lockdown. Last week the RSPB said that incidents had surged during the lockdown but failed to provide evidence to supports its claim (see Gamekeeper, p55). In a letter to the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation (NGO), Chief Inspector Lou Hubble said: “The NWCU have requested details of all incidents of which the RSPB have been made aware.”

She went on to pay tribute to the work of gamekeepers in tackling illegal raptor persecution, saying: “The NWCU are grateful for the contributions from all members of the Raptor Persecution Priority Delivery Group, including the NGO, and hope to continue to develop working relationships with all group members to tackle raptor persecution.”

Responding to the letter Liam Bell, chairman of the NGO, said: “We thank the NWCU for getting in touch with us and clarifying their position. We want to get an accurate and complete picture of what is happening across the country and the RSPB report felt like a PR exercise with no real foundation. We hope that the persecution of birds of prey is eradicated and we want to continue to work closely with our partners and stakeholders across the country to make this happen.”

Our shooting bodies are committed to stopping raptor persecution