If you live in the Dark Peak constituencies or Derbyshire areas please feel free to use this letter or parts of it as a template for your own letter to your MP.
Dear [your MP],
I am a constituent of
yours and I signed the e-petition on the parliament website entitled
Ban Driven Grouse Shooting
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/125003
That e-petition has passed 100,000 signatures and therefore is
expected to receive a debate in Westminster Hall some time later than
the 9th of October. In our constituency of [your constituency] [No. of signatures in your area] people have
supported this e-petition
http://petitionmap.unboxedconsulting.com/?petition=125003
You may or may not be
aware of the issues surrounding the hobby of driven grouse shooting,
but the Dark Peak area of the Peak District has for the last 5 years
been subject of a multi-agency project to increase the numbers of
birds of prey in the Dark Peak area, following concerns about
declining populations of several birds of prey, reported instances of
known or suspected illegal persecution and the failure of nest
protection schemes to maintain bird of prey populations. You can read
the summary of the 5 years of bird of prey initiative at
http://www.peakdistrict.gov.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/655771/PDNP-Birds-of-Prey-Report-2012-15.pdf
The overall message is
that bird of prey numbers failed to increase (in some cases
decreased), this despite birds being observed present and displaying
breeding behaviour every year during the project these birds somehow
never manage to successfully breed and seemingly disappear, this in
comparison to the White Peak areas where the same species are
breeding successfully and increasing in number.
Discovering evidence of
raptor persecution in vast unpopulated areas of upland is extremely
difficult, yet during the initiative period there have been several
incidents of raptor persecution discovered and publicised.
2 Common Buzzard found
dead, investigations showed these 2 birds where shot
1 Common Buzzard found
in a Fenn Trap, this bird had to be euthanised
1 Osprey found alive
but subsequently died due to injuries consistent with being caught in
a Fenn Trap
1 Goshawk failed at
nesting with a shotgun cartridge wadding found under the nest tree,
and shot feathers recovered by local raptor workers.
1 Goshawk nest robbery
recorded by RSPB investigations covert camera.
1 Goshawk nest shot in
the darkness recorded by RSPB investigations covert camera.
2 Goshawk nests under
covert protection failed in very suspicious circumstances (both in
similar circumstances).
In addition to the
above, there has been a widely reported incident of an armed
individual on moorland in the Dark Peak with a decoy Hen Harrier,
although the police were unable to substantiate who the individual
was or what exactly he was doing, the shooting tenant had his lease
ended early by the landowner (The National Trust).
Raptor persecution is
just one of the issues linked with driven grouse shooting and there
are many others which should be considered; Damage to important and
protected habitats, water quality issues which increases the cost of
water for everyone. Also the use of lead ammunition, a known poison
removed from many of uses but strangely allowed to be used to kill
something that people (and wildlife) can and will eat, studies show
that the lead content even after removal of visible lead using x-ray
can be hundreds of times the levels that would be allowed for other
meat types. Despite the findings of a government commissioned report
that was so 'inconvenient', the results were completely ignored.
Anyone would think that if you have enough money you don’t have to
abide by the same rules as the rest of society, wouldn’t you agree?
It is hard to see how
Driven Grouse Shooting will manage to make the changes required to
make it a sustainable and viable hobby, when it can’t accept the
vast evidence against the use of lead, remember lead was removed from
water pipes, petrol, paint, fishing weights etc. There are widely
used and viable alternatives available and yet we have seen all that
evidence ignored completely, why is that? To assist a few individuals
who found it all just a little bit too inconvenient.
If
all of this wasn’t enough, this is all taking place within a
National Park on protected landscapes such as those with SPA, SAC,
SSSI designations.
Nationally the Hen
Harrier is on the verge of extinction in England due to illegal
persecution, as reported in the governments own paper “A future for
the Hen Harrier in England?”
http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/file/81030
Please note the “?”
at the end of the title! There is suitable habitat to support around
300 pairs of Hen Harrier in England, 2016 sees just 3 reported
nesting attempts.
There have only been 3
successful Hen Harrier’s nesting attempts in the Dark Peak area of
the Peak District, in recent times, of these 3 nests two were only
successful due to human intervention providing supplementary feeding
after the male birds disappeared, a phenomena that occurs almost
entirely, only, on grouse moors, such areas are largely devoid of
other predators due to the management, strange that wouldn’t you
agree?
Peregrine Falcons were
subject of a national survey in 2014. Overall, the survey provides a
strong message that Peregrines are faring better in urban and other
lowland situations than in the uplands. Studies show that Peregrine
Falcons are far less likely to be successful in areas managed for
driven grouse shooting. The Peak District Bird of Prey Initiative
reflects these issues and with the highly successful populations in
neighbouring areas it is very difficult to attribute these huge
discrepancies to anything other than illegal persecution,
particularly in light of the recorded persecution incidents for other
larger raptor species.
I hope that when the
date of the debate is determined you will be able to attend the
debate – would it be your intention to do so?
I hope that when the
debate occurs you might feel able to represent my views in that
debate. I want to see stronger regulation of driven grouse shooting
and changes in the way our hills are managed. Do you think you would
be able to speak on that subject?
I would be grateful for
your response and the opportunity to brief you on the subject if you
are planning to attend the debate.
Kind Regards
[your name & address]
