HL Deb 01 December 1983 vol 445 cc868-70WA
Lord Melchett

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many licences for the shooting of barnacle geese on Islay in Scotland they have issued this year; the maximum total number of individuals that these licences could allow to shoot barnacle geese; and whether they will list the farms covered by such licences.

Lord Gray of Contin

Thirty-eight licences have been issued this year for the shooting of barnacle geese. The maximum total number of individuals that these licences could allow to shoot barnacle geese is 56. I do not consider that it would be appropriate to publish a list of the individual farms covered by licences, but the information is provided to the Nature Conservancy Council and on request to other bodies with a legitimate interest.

Lord Melchett

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many landlords (who are not owner-occupiers) on Islay in Scotland have been issued with licences allowing them to shoot barnacle geese to prevent agricultural damage; whether these licences are transferable and if so to whom and to how many people in total; what evidence of need to protect agricultural crops was required from landlords before such licences were issued, and what advice they received from the Nature Conservancy Council on this point.

Lord Gray of Contin

All applicants for licences are required to list crops at risk and to indicate whether damage had occurred in previous seasons, but the need for licences is independently assessed by officers of my department. Local staff of the Nature Conservancy Council are consulted in the course of assessment of need in each case. Five licences have been issued to landlords authorising the shooting of barnacle geese on land which is not owner-occupied, although in three of these cases the licence also covers shooting on in-hand farms. Licences are not transferable.

Lord Melchett

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will give an example of circumstances in which it could be necessary for the purpose of protecting agriculture on Islay in Scotland to drive barnacle geese from saltings over guns and where therefore such action would not involve breaking the law.

Lord Gray of Contin

I am not prepared to give hypothetical examples; any such case would have to be considered on its merits to establish whether the action was legal or not.

Lord Melchett

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether, before issuing licences to allow the shooting of barnacle geese on Islay in Scotland to prevent serious agricultural damage, they take into account the extent to which those applying for licences have tried a variety of scaring techniques to protect crops in the past and intend to continue to use such techniques in future, and whether this is made clear to those applying for such licences.

Lord Gray of Contin

Applicants for licences to shoot barnacle geese are asked to state what other methods will be used in conjunction with shooting. When assessing the need for issue of licences, the officers of my department take account of efforts which have been made to use other scaring techniques, although generally such techniques have not been found effective on Islay. The notes for guidance issued with all licences state that shooting should be supplementary to other methods of crop protection.