§ 29. Mr. John GreenwayTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what representations he has received about proposed reform of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 about the protection of birds.
§ Mr. Chris PattenI have received many representations in response to the proposal to introduce a licensing scheme for the control of pest bird species which we put forward as a way of bringing our practice into line with the requirements of the EC birds directive. The great majority of those responding argued that there are no conservation reasons for changing the law and that our traditional practices are fully in line with the spirit of the directive. The Government agree and I therefore intend to take no further action on this proposal but shall continue to press the European Commission to bring forward a proposal for amending the directive so that member states can operate sensible pest control practices.