Countryside Alliance - love the countryside

Members of the shooting community have until 27th August to make submissions to a new inquiry into firearms control, set up by the Home Affairs Select Committee in the wake of the Cumbria shootings. We already have serious concerns that this inquiry has been set up before the results of the Cumbrian Police investigation have been announced, but we cannot simply ignore it. The Countryside Alliance will be making a full and robust response.

Members of the shooting community have until 27th August to make submissions to a new inquiry into firearms control, set up by the Home Affairs Select Committee in the wake of the Cumbria shootings. We already have serious concerns that this inquiry has been set up before the results of the Cumbrian Police investigation have been announced, but we cannot simply ignore it. The Countryside Alliance will be making a full and robust response.

The one million people who are licensed to shoot in the UK take their responsibilities in owning and using legal firearms incredibly seriously, and we are confident that their common sense approach will be represented to the Committee. We will continue to work with the Government and relevant authorities to ensure that events like that which occurred in Cumbria are even less likely, but we should all make it clear that now is not the time for kneejerk legislation which has no effect whatsoever on reducing gun crime. As the Prime Minister observed, you cannot legislate for a switch flicking in someone’s head.

The Committee, chaired by Keith Vaz MP, will examine whether or not there is a need for changes to the way in which firearms and/or shotgun certificates are issued, monitored or reviewed as a means of preventing gun violence. In particular the inquiry will focus on the extent to which legally-held guns are used in criminal activity and the relationship between gun control and gun crime, including the impact of the Firearms (Amendment) Acts 1997; whether or not the current laws governing firearms licensing are fit for purpose; proposals to improve information-sharing between medics and the police in respect of gun licensing; information-sharing between police and prisons in assessing the risk of offenders who may have access to firearms and the danger presented by, and legislation regulating, airguns.

Shooting is worth £1.6 billion to the UK economy, supporting the equivalent of 70,000 jobs and shooters spend £250 million a year on habitat and wildlife management. Those who play a part in this are not the criminals. We cannot turn the clock back to take away what happened in Cumbria on that dreadful day, but we can make our case calmly and with common sense; now is not time for over-reaction, but for proceeding on the facts - and everyone who shoots should help to provide those facts.

You can respond via email to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or in writing to

Home Affairs Committee

House of Commons

7 Millbank

London SW1P 3JA

Telephone 020 7219 3276

Click here for a note on written evidence from the Committee's website

The Committee is seeking written submissions of no more than 2,500 words from interested parties, before it takes oral evidence on this inquiry. Organisations and individuals interested in making written submissions are invited to do so by Friday 27th August 2010.

Go to www.shooting-alliance.org.uk for more information on our shooting campaign and on Countryside Alliance work following the shootings in Cumbria.

It seems that the Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) Project may be being targeted by pressure groups with an agenda which would like to see total bans on fishing activities within the zones and that these would include the recreational angler. We are very much aware of the potential problems of "no take zones" forming part of the regimes operating within designated MCZs. We have been working closely with members, and through our communications networks, to ensure that local recreational anglers are aware of proposals and fully involved in the process. We would, however, urge local members to take an active part in the consultation process to ensure that a balanced outcome is achieved which is acceptable to conservationists and anglers alike. The first MCZ Newsletter was issued in Spring 2010 and the second was published last week. Click to receive the first Newsletter, which includes an additional link to subscribe to further editions. Read more on this issue on our website.

The news of a prosecution by the RSPCA of Raymond Elliot, who trapped and killed a squirrel, caused a ripple of press interest and extensive debate on "the best way" to do it. Mr Elliot chose drowning,believing it the best way, although it falls foul of the Animal Welfare Act 2006, but the "best way" is far from clear cut.

The government guidelines on squirrel dispatch are sketchy. Defra confirms that once trapped, a grey squirrel should not be released back into the wild owing to its status as a non-native species in the UK.

Defra’s preferred methods could cause distress to the animal: finding an air rifle, loading it, and firing it through the holes of a cage to dispatch the vermin makes sense but could take longer than “popping it in a bag and whacking it over the head” which has different challenges, especially finding the head when an angry squirrel is running around a sack. Applying for a licence to release the squirrel would also prolong the suffering as there is an inevitable delay whilst the paperwork is squared away.

Whilst other options may have been preferable, the advice on squirrel dispatch is limited and hardly everyday reading. Mr Elliot has been prosecuted, forced to pay costs and made a criminal in the eyes of the law for doing what he thought was right. As one commentator said of this case, perhaps Mr Elliot would have been better taking the squirrel to his local RSPCA shelter and let them do it.

The Department for Communities and Local Government has launched a new initiative called “Community Right to Build”. It asks “If you and your neighbours had the power to decide, how would you develop your community?”

This initiative hopes to harness people power and allow communities “to get together and take forward developments for new homes, shops and facilities in their area”. It will put community wishes above planning permission, and you can have your say .

Read more about the Community Right to Build here and contact the Department with views or to ask for how to get involved at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Roxtons Fieldsports, bespoke sporting agents, have teamed up with the Countryside Alliance to raffle a day’s shooting for 8 guns at one of their top estates.

Win a 300 bird pheasant or partridge day for a line of eight guns at one of Roxtons’ premier shoots which include the fabled Miltons in Somerset, Drynachan in Invernesshire and Hurdcott in Wiltshire. The shoot and date is to be mutually agreed for the 2011/12 season. The prize includes one night’s bed and breakfast in a local hotel, transport and all refreshments on the shoot day and a Roxtons host.

The prize is worth up to £14,000. Tickets are priced at £25 each and are limited to 2,500. The winning ticket will be drawn at the 2011 Game Fair at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire.

How to Enter: Go to www.c-ashop.co.uk or request a flyer from the Countryside Alliance Events office on 0207 840 9200.