BASC to challenge exclusion from Welsh licences review
BASC is to challenge a High Court decision to refuse to give it ‘interested party’ status in a legal action by Wild Justice.
The High Court has refused BASC interested party status in the forthcoming judicial review of general licences in Wales.
The refusal of BASC’s application followed the High Court granting Wild Justice permission to proceed with the review of the licences, which are administered by Natural Resources Wales (NRW). The campaign group announced in March that it was intending to launch a legal challenge against NRW over the licences. The move was described by BASC at the time as “wholly inappropriate” and a waste of valuable time and resources just as the coronavirus pandemic was sweeping the country.
Steve Griffiths, BASC Wales director, said: “BASC was understandably disappointed with the original decision of the court. We strongly believe that the users of the Welsh general licences should be represented by their organisation within the proceedings... This formal application, whether taken forward or not, is part of a wider strategy to ensure the scientific evidence is presented to counter the claims from Wild Justice.”
At the time of the High Court decision, Caroline Bedell, BASC’s executive director of conservation, vowed to continue “working closely with NRW and Defra to ensure a future-proof and workable set of licences”.
The focus of Wild Justice’s challenge is thought to be concentrated on the licence that allows for control of carrion crows and magpies for conservation purposes. The case is likely to be heard this autumn.