§ 58. Mr. Hastingsasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what progress has been made by his Department towards development of a satisfactory means of destroying wood pigeons.
Mr. Vane:Organised shooting and systematic nest destruction remain the more effective methods if carried out on a wide enough scale. Experiments by the Ministry's scientists show that wood pigeons can be successfully narcotised but this involves risks to protected and game birds. Experiments are continuing to see how far these risks can be reduced.