National Gamekeepers' Organisation responds to the RSPB's change of policy

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Last week the Chief Executive of the RSPB, Beccy Speight, wrote to a number of rural organisations. She wrote to announce that at their Annual General Meeting, held on Saturday 15^th October, the RSPB would be announcing a change to their policy, The change in policy involves calling for stronger regulations on the release of non-native gamebird species. 

National Gamekeepers’ Organisation believes that this is a misguided stance from the RSPB; a stance which only serves to show that the organisation is more interested in pursuing their campaign against game shooting, than in conserving and improving the prospect of the UK’s bird life. 

As has been shown time and time again, the conservation benefits of the work carried out by gamekeepers are enormous. Shoots across the UK manage 200 million hectares of land for conservation, and conservation work carried out by gamekeepers as part of game and shoot management plays a crucial role in preserving the habitats and wildlife so important to Britain's biodiversity.

Habitats created and managed by gamekeepers includes woodland, hedgerows, field margins, cover crops, and wetlands. The work that gamekeepers put into providing habitats and the supplementary feeding that they carry out down benefits much other wildlife year-round, and helps to improve biodiversity nation-wise. 

Predator control is another important aspect of game management. This reduces predation pressure, particularly in spring, when chicks and nesting birds are particularly vulnerable to predation. It is notable that many red and amber-listed species, in particular ground-nesting birds, thrive in areas managed for shooting. The same applies to species such as the mountain hare, which thrive on managed moorland in the uplands. Despite the RSPB’s substantial funds, many vulnerable species struggle to thrive in their nature reserves, but thrive in areas managed by gamekeepers. 

In addition to the conservation benefits that shooting brings to this country, the work that gamekeepers do carries out an important socio-economic role. As well as playing contributing 2 billion to the UK economy every year and supporting thousands of small rural businesses, shoot days and the rearing of game is a vital social lynchpin for many people in areas which are often isolated. Shoot days, whether beating, loading, working dogs or shooting, can be one of the few social highlights of people’s diary through the long winter months. Going shooting boosts mental wellbeing and physical health, as well as improving social contact for the young, old, and all ages in between.  

The National Gamekeepers’ Organisation would like nothing more than to see the UK’s birdlife thrive and flourish, and hope that the RSPB have a similar aim. The question remains, however, why the RSPB would choose to target the gamekeeping sector, when it is clear that habitats where good management practices are carried out realise a net benefit to the UK’s bird population, and wildlife more generally.