Dr Therese Coffey is the junior minister at Defra. When Gavin Gamble’s e-petition in favour of banning driven grouse shooting passes 10,000 signatures (and it now stands at over 9700) then Dr Coffey will need to sign off a government response.
In order that she does not make Defra look even more foolish than they do already I am providing a reading list for the minister to inform her response.
This one is very short and quite telling, Dr Coffey. Have a look at the Country Life editorial on 13 September this year. Two sentences leapt out at me:
‘Persecution of raptors remains a scourge in the uplands, lead shot is sometimes used to fell wildfowl and some shoots will struggle to sell all the birds they shoot.’
‘The question, therefore, is not whether shooting can save itself, but whether it has the will to do so.’
The editorial is basically pro-shooting of course, and there is a lot of stuff about the good outweighing the bad, but the admission and recognition of the bad is to be welcomed. And if the question is whether shooting has the will to save itself then the answer, Dr Coffey, is that it really doesn’t appear to have the will or the wit to do so. And that’s where you should step in to give shooting a bit of a hand, to save it from its own vices and from its foolishness in not dealing with them itself. It would be an act of kindness, and good government, to ratchet up the pressure on the shooting industry now. The shooters may not thank you publicly but you know that some of them will thank you privately, and the rest of us will thank you publicly. It is up to you, but don’t think we aren’t all watching and waiting to see what you do
Please sign this e-petition to ban driven grouse shooting and put Dr Coffey on the spot.
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“DEFRA minister Dr Thérèse Coffey spoke of the importance of continued investment by the shooting community when she addressed a packed rural reception hosted by the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) and the Angling Trust at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester.
The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs highlighted shooting’s role in the environmental and economic sustainability of rural communities.
Dr Coffey said: “Certainly, shooting and fishing are pursuits that many people enjoy and government stands by its commitment to protect shooting and fishing. I would like to say a big thank you to BASC and the Angling Trust for your work. This government supports your ambitions for both sports to have a vibrant future.
“It matters that we continue to see investment in shooting, as it is key to job security and habitat conservation. The government want to see a vibrant working countryside that is enhanced by a biodiverse environment.”
Aaaaaaaaargh!