Gavin Gamble’s e-petition to ban driven grouse shooting came out of nowhere as far as I was concerned. But I have supported it and will continue to support it, and it has topped 20,000 signatures which is respectable rather than spectacular, but I remain confident that it will reach a much higher total by the early days of April when it closes. I’ll continue to support it – and have a few plans in hand to do just that, and so does Gavin.
But, from what we know, which isn’t everything, Gavin’s petition provoked a rather intemperate response from someone under the name of Jane Griggs and that petition has gathered considerable support (over 12,000 signatures) from central London and a few rural outposts. It is a serious petition in terms of its support already and there is a real and present danger that it will do pretty well – perhaps outscoring Gavin’s e-petition but I hope not. I don’t take much notice of the many deprecatory remarks about it in public from shooters – it’s clear that under the radar (mostly) there are some shooters working hard on getting support for it (and I don’t blame them or criticise them for that – I simply don’t want them to win!).
But we do know that the Griggs pro-grouse shooting e-petition did stimulate a reader of this blog, Ed Hutchings, to set up his own e-petition in favour of licensing. And good for him! I’ve signed it as I think we will need to get licensing of driven grouse shooting before we will get a ban – but a ban is what I want in the end.
Now all eyes turn to the RSPB who have been the main advocates of licensing (with the Scottish Raptor Study Groups of course) to see what they will do in terms of supporting Ed’s licensing e-petition. The RSPB has a poor record in supporting e-petitions, even those that fit with their own policies, but I’m sure the RSPB will be thinking hard about this over the Christmas break. Already the signs are good, a number of small RSPB Twitter accounts have been promoting Ed’s e-petition and there have been warm words about doing more. That’s really good, but actions speak louder than words, and that applies to NGOs as well as governments. I will be disappointed if the RSPB does not properly support Ed’s e-petition.
And, it would be difficult for the RSPB not to support Ed’s e-petition under these circumstances – as a wildlife conservation organisation with over a million members, keen on nature conservation, how can one not mobilise them on such an issue? I gather we may see a statement on the RSPB position after Christmas, in early January – how exciting!
And I am delighted that the RSPB Chair of Council, Kevin Cox, has agreed to write a Guest Blog here for mid-January too. That’ll be interesting, and I look forward to seeing it and publishing it.
I’ve been thinking of what I should do and this is what I have decided:
- I’ll continue to update you on the progress of all three e-petitions at intervals on this blog
- I’ll publish Kevin Cox’s blog (which will presumably be in favour of licensing)
- I’ll publish ‘N’s’ Guest Blog in favour of grouse shooting if he decides to write one
- I’ll publish further Guest Blogs from Gavin Gamble and Ed Hutchings if they wish to write them
- I’ll use my social media accounts to promote both Gavin’s and Ed’s e-petitions
- I’ll put my main efforts into promoting Gavin Gamble’s e-petition to ban driven grouse shooting up until it closes and then, depending on whether the RSPB has got its act together to support Ed’s e-petition, I’ll spend some time getting behind that e-petition.
Significant people in the RSPB already making the right noises.
Well done Mark; a nice summary of the current situation. We all have great hopes for Kevin Cox as Chairman of RSPB. Not just grouse shooting but I hope Nature’s Voice will also take a very firm stance on lead shot in the environment, and perhaps even cats running free. Though this may be a long shot! I would also like RSPB to oppose the release of captive birds simply for the purpose of being shot (after all it was against trap shooting of pigeons — and releasing millions of pheasants is only marginally different). This of course is a personal opinion. But I would, as a member, like to see RSPB take a lead on these issues.
I can hardly begin to express how angry, disappointed and let down I will feel if the RSPB does not actively support Ed Hutchings’ petition.
I can understand the reservations the RSPB (and many others) may have about the whole e-petition approach, but the existence of the pro-shooting petition seals the deal for me. The very notion that the RSPB could stand by while a petition saying things like killing vermin is a social service and BoP are over-protected gathers signatures and support is just unthinkable to me.
Like Mark, I don’t believe that a licensing system is likely to prove effective, but it may well be a necessary first step. More importantly, a really powerful push for licensing will send a strong signal to the grouse botherers (as someone called them on RPUK). More importantly yet, a feeble response will send out exactly the wrong signal, and this should not be allowed to happen.
I’m reminded of the old chestnut, attributed to Churchill (but possibly apocryphal), along the lines of “X always does the right thing. In the end. After trying all the other options.”
Something needs to be done to save hen harriers.
Things were being done, especially with the significant success of Mark’s petition and the debate which opened so many opportunities to fact check and push back against the pro-shooting lobby, but Gavin Gamble undid them all with his mighty push to get his journalism career onto the next level. Those things Gavin has planned, they are all ways to get his byline and name onto as many articles as humanly possible. Shame it hands the pro-shooters such a massive stick to beat us with, but at least when they do then Gavin will be on hand to submit an article about that to the Granuiad about it.
After this is over, once we’re free of the load Gavin has shackled us all to, then Gavin ought to be persona non grata in the Environmental Movement. But I expect we’ll continue to let ourselves be used by him, we’re driven by instinct to say well done to people, A for effort, and be “nice” about things. It is our biggest weakness.