I’m catching up on news items here as I’ve been away from my home computer and driving around the UK, or so it seems, for weeks. Robert Goodwill is the new Minister of State in Defra with responsibility for farming – he is a farmer (although his main crop seems to be dead people). Conservative…
Category: THE POLITICS: Ministers, MPs, government policy
168 hours ago…
A week ago we launched our crowdfunder on the crowdjustice page to fund a judicial review of Natural England’s decision to issue the general Licences GL04-06. Now we have raised over £30,700 of the £36,000 we need to cover our lawyers’ (highly discounted) fees, court costs and the possibility that we may lose the case…
The General Licences
Have you ever read the General Licences? Help yourself, here they are: GL04, GL05 and GL06. So the reasons why you might be able to kill birds under these licences are quite sensible. They include serious damage to crops and livestock. They include the prevention of disease. And they include the conservation of fauna and…
What Defra thinks is great…
If you are hanging around at reception in the entrance to Nobel House, Smith Square waiting for someone to come and take you to your meeting within the Defra HQ you may glance around and see lots of rather naff posters depicting what Defra thinks is great. Here is a selection (apologies for the poor…
Long-serving Defra minister George Eustice resigns
George Eustice has resigned from the government and from his post as Minister of State in Defra. That post is more senior than Therese Coffey as a Parliamentary Under Secretary and less senior than Michael Gove as Secretary of State. Eustice has been a Defra minister since October 2013 – an exceptionally long time (first…
Countryside Alliance clash with Defra policy on grouse hand-outs
The Countryside Alliance is giving Chris Packham a little rest and is turning its nastiness towards Tony Juniper, Michael Gove’s proposed new Chair of the hapless Natural England (who will appear before the Efra committee on Tuesday). According to the Sunday Telegraph, campaigners representing ‘farming, countryside communities and businesses‘, (though only the Countryside Alliance is…
Independent or simply refugees?
At the time of writing, 11 MPs have joined the Independent Group: eight from Labour and three from the Conservatives. They haven’t yet formed a political party but they are a fascinating grouping who have little in common except starting off as Remainers. But have you noticed that there are seven women and just four…
Chris Davies MP
I keep a kindly eye on those MPs who spoke in the ‘debate’ over banning driven grouse shooting in October 2016. One, the MP for Brecon and Radnorshire described me thus; ‘Only the other week I had the privilege of attending the evidence session on grouse shooting. Several right hon. and hon. Members have already…
Brexit – an environmental recap
Today is the latest, and not the last, in a series of momentous parliamentary days in shaping how, or perhaps if, we are leaving the EU. A no-deal Brexit in 59 days’ time (at 11pm on my birthday – I resent that choice of date) will be a disaster for our environment. It will be…
Solving the Brexit log-jam
It’s simple really (written with a wry smile). Vote in Parliament this week on whether Parliament supports or rejects May’s deal. If vote is in favour – problem sorted. If not (as expected) go to point 2. Set up two referenda, one week apart, in first half of March. First referendum, ask population to vote…