Written question WQ94458
- Asked by
- Carolyn ThomasLabour
- To be answered by
- Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 7 days
Question
Will the Cabinet Secretary provide an update on the licensing of released game birds, in response to a recommendation by Natural Resources Wales in October 2023 that existing regulatory and voluntary measures are insufficient to manage the environmental risks associated with the release of pheasants and red-legged partridges?
Answer
Answered by Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs
Following a consultation, in October 2023 Natural Resources Wales published advice to the Welsh Government that common pheasant and red-legged partridge should be added to Part 1 of Schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and thereafter that any releases of these two species in Wales should be managed through a proportionate, risk-based licensing framework. We are currently reviewing the matter and will share further information in due course.