§ Sir Hector Monroasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list the meteorological stations concerned, their height above sea level in feet and their daily temperatures in degrees Fahrenheit for the 14 days before the cold weather shooting ban was put into force in January and for the seven subsequent days.
§ Mr. YoungerThe criteria and arrangements for the imposition of shooting bans in severe weather are based on recommendations made by the Nature Conservancy Council's working group on wildfowling bans in severe weather which reported in 1982. This group included representatives from the British Association for Shooting and Conservation, British Trust for Ornithology, British Field Sports Society, Game Conservancy Council and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.
The Government accepted the working group's recommendation that a ban should be imposed where more than half the 13 agreed meteorological stations had recorded frosty weather for more than 13 consecutive days disregarding short spells of milder weather during that period. Frosty weather is defined in this context and for this purpose as
state of ground E4-5 (no snow but surface frozen or glaze) or E'0–9 (snow or measurable ice cover)".Air temperature is not therefore relevant and is not recorded for the purpose of deciding on any ban on wildfowling. Three of the 13 meteorological stations are in Scotland at Dyce, Leuchars and Abbotsinch. Where the circumstances so warrant — for example, because weather conditions in Scotland are markedly different from those obtaining elsewhere in Great Britain — information is also sought from meteorological stations at Inverness, Prestwick and Carlisle.
Depending on the information received from the five Scottish stations and Carlisle, the decision whether or not to impose a ban, and the timing of any ban, may differ from that made in relation to England and Wales.
"Frosty weather", defined as indicated, was recorded at the Five Scottish stations and Carlisle on the dates shown.
637W
Height above sea level Dyce 215ft Leuchars 33ft Abbotsinch 16ft Inverness 13ft Carlisle 86ft Prestwick 53ft 22 X X 23 X X X X X X 24 X X X X X X 25 X X X X X X X State of ground E4-5 or 0–9