We totally oppose all illegal killing of wildlife, especially our local birds of prey, many of which are internationally important or are locally rare such as the hen harrier, peregrine and goshawk.
The illegal persecution of wildlife must stop now.
We support a vision of our local uplands as a mosaic of habitats supporting thriving populations of all the species that should be present in these inspiring places, including birds of prey. We want to see a healthy natural environment, a vibrant economy and thriving communities. Our uplands are wonderful ‘wild’ places but they could be even better for people and wildlife.
We believe that a new approach away from increasingly intensive grouse moor management is needed – something has to change soon. Ideally this will be an increase in breeding hen harriers and other birds of prey due to action from grouse moor owners to help conserve these important species. Licensing legitimate law abiding grouse shoots is another option put forward by the RSPB. Or alternatively, vicarious responsibility of the landowner (as in Scotland) could be made law. But all depend on adequate policing, sentencing and resourcing to administer and monitor.
We are strongly against peatland burning, which has been shown to destroy sphagnum mosses, deepen water tables and damage underlying peat.
We are against the use of rodenticide – it should only be used as a last resort when all other methods have failed.