Government to limit but not ban snare use
20 Feb 08
Snares necessary for wildlife conservation, says Environment Minister
New measures are to be brought in limiting the use of snares and banning those which cause unnecessary suffering.
The Scottish Government is also considering new legislation to introduce new penalties to punish people who use snares illegally.
However, animal welfare organisations, Advocates for Animals and the League Against Cruel Sports have not supported the government's actions, as they want a total ban on snares.
The new measures include:
- the compulsory fitting of crimped safety stops to prevent the noose closing too far and inflicting damage;
- the compulsory fitting of ID tags on snares which will allow identification of their owner by the authorities;
- the action of a snare must be checked before it is set;
- snares will not be allowed to be set on posts, over water courses, or on planks or fences and the areas where they are set will need to be clearly marked with signs.
The Minister for Environment, Michael Russell said: "At the end of a very lengthy process of discussion and reflection I have come to the conclusion that snaring is still necessary in some circumstances. However it is also clear to me that we can and must do better in terms of eliminating bad practice, for I believe it is bad practice - and sometimes criminally bad practice - which is responsible for some of the dreadful cases brought forward by animal rights organisations.
Mr Russell quoted a field experiement which demonstrated that predator control increased the breeding stock of the wild grey partridge by 42% and that without such control, stocks declined.
He added: "The public are rightly concerned about what happens to the wildlife that is part of all our heritage. They need to be absolutely confident that where snaring is necessary, there is no room for any doubt about what is allowed, that the practice is undertaken by competent and responsible individuals, that we have outlawed any practices which do not match up to welfare standards - and that we are vigorously enforcing that law."