# Wild Justice

> Wild Justice takes legal cases and advocates for a better deal for UK wildlife


## Posts

- [Environment campaigners call for scrutiny of Planning and Infrastructure Bill by MPs](https://tempo.samkilday.com/environment-campaigners-call-for-scrutiny-of-planning-and-infrastructure-bill-by-mps/): Environment campaigners have called on MPs to scrutinise the proposed Planning and Infrastructure Bill for any reduction of environmental protections. Campaign group Wild Justice has appealed to parliamentarians after the High Court ruled that a claim made by former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner about the bill must be examined in Parliament, rather than in the courts. Ms Rayner had claimed in Parliament that the bill would not reduce environmental protections. Wild Justice issued a legal challenge, which the government defended by arguing the statement was covered by parliamentary privilege. Following a hearing at the start of November, the High […]
- [High Court judgment reaffirms costs cap protection for environmental claims](https://tempo.samkilday.com/high-court-judgment-reaffirms-costs-cap-protection-for-environmental-claims/): The High Court has reaffirmed costs cap protections for NGOs after blocking an attempt by Natural England to hike campaigners’ legal costs in a challenge against badger culling licences. In a comprehensive judgment handed down on 28 October 2025, the High Court stated it had “no hesitation” in dismissing Natural England’s application to more than double the total potential cost liability for campaign groups Wild Justice and Badger Trust in their claim. The claim itself contests Natural England’s decision to grant badger culling licences against advice from its own scientists, and was given permission to proceed in May 2025. Under […]
- [High Court rejects Natural England bid to hike legal costs for campaigners challenging badger culling](https://tempo.samkilday.com/high-court-rejects-natural-england-bid-to-hike-legal-costs-for-campaigners-challenging-badger-culling/): An attempt by Natural England to hike campaigners’ legal costs to challenge badger culling licences has been blocked by the High Court. The legal challenge, brought by wildlife groups Wild Justice and Badger Trust, opposes the granting of 26 culling licences by Natural England. The challenge faced a potential stumbling block after Natural England applied to increase the limit on the groups’ adverse legal costs from the standard £10,000 for NGOs to £20,000 for Wild Justice and £30,000 for Badger Trust. If Natural England had won, the legal challenge could have proved too expensive for the groups to bring. However, […]
- [Investigation in to suspected unlawful release of gamebirds in the buffer zone of a Special Protection Area](https://tempo.samkilday.com/investigation-in-to-suspected-unlawful-release-of-gamebirds-in-the-buffer-zone-of-a-special-protection-area/): This summer we have been investigating what we suspect to be the unlawful release of gamebirds in the buffer zone of a Special Protection Area (SPA) in England. As you may recall, thanks to our legal action in 2020 about the unregulated release of non-native gamebirds (Pheasants & Red-legged Partridges) on or near Natura 2000 sites (areas designated to protect Europe’s most valuable & threatened habitats and species), Defra decided to add these two species to Schedule 9 of the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981, which means that in England, they can only be released on or close to Natura […]
- [Please respond to this consultation on rodenticides](https://tempo.samkilday.com/please-respond-to-this-consultation-on-rodenticides/): The Health and Safety Executive has announced a consultation on Second Generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SGARs). Although this is meant to be a ‘public’ consultation, there appears to have been very little actual publicity informing anyone or the conservation organisations that this exercise is taking place. The consultation itself – click here to see it – is rather inaccessible to the average member of the public (whom, we argue, can both take part in rodent control and has an interest in the methods of control that are available). The consultation is particularly fiddly, involving the downloading of forms as Word documents, […]
- [Judge rules planning permission for outdoor adventure centre in Pembrokeshire is unlawful because of environmental concerns](https://tempo.samkilday.com/judge-rules-planning-permission-for-outdoor-adventure-centre-in-pembrokeshire-is-unlawful-because-of-environmental-concerns/): Judge rules planning permission for outdoor adventure centre in Pembrokeshire is unlawful because of environmental concerns In a victory for local residents, the High Court has today (5 September 2025) ruled that permission for an outdoor adventure centre near Ceibwr Bay on the Pembrokeshire Coast was granted unlawfully following a legal challenge brought by campaign group Wild Justice. Ceibwr Bay forms part of the Cardigan Bay Special Area of Conservation (SAC), the Pembrokeshire Marine SAC, the West Wales Marine SAC and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The cliffs are home to nesting razorbill, guillemot, fulmar, herring gull, chough […]
- [Join us at the Wild Summit on 11 Sept 2025 at the Bristol Beacon](https://tempo.samkilday.com/join-us-at-the-wild-summit-on-11-sept-2025-at-the-bristol-beacon/): We’ll be attending the inaugural Wild Summit on 11 September 2025 – an environmental extravaganza organised by Wildlife & Countryside Link which will bring together nature lovers, campaigners, politicians and policy experts to celebrate wildlife and nature conservation in the UK and discuss the action we must take to improve and restore it. There’ll be over 100 speakers during the day – including discussion panels on the main stage and ‘partner’ events running concurrently in three separate areas. In the main hall you’ll find the stalls of many of the leading wildlife and environmental organisations where you can go and chat about […]
- [Court hearing for Wild Justice’s legal challenge against Planning and Infrastructure Bill](https://tempo.samkilday.com/court-hearing-for-wild-justices-legal-challenge-against-planning-and-infrastructure-bill/): Court hearing for Wild Justice’s legal challenge against Planning and Infrastructure Bill Arguments for a legal challenge against the government over the Planning and Infrastructure Bill will be made in a High Court hearing later this year. Wild Justice argues that Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s claim to Parliament that the bill will not reduce environmental protections was unlawful. The campaign group’s legal team will spell out why their claim for judicial review should be given the go ahead in a hearing to be held in November 2025. In June 2025, Wild Justice issued a judicial review challenge to Ms […]
- [Legal challenge to overgrazing on Dartmoor commons to be heard in High Court](https://tempo.samkilday.com/legal-challenge-to-overgrazing-on-dartmoor-commons-to-be-heard-in-high-court/): A legal challenge brought by campaign group Wild Justice against Dartmoor Commoners’ Council over its management of grazing on the commons is set to be heard in the High Court this week. In a hearing taking place on 15 and 16 July, Wild Justice will argue that Dartmoor Commoners’ Council (DCC) has failed to meet its responsibilities to manage livestock numbers and grazing. The commons is an open area of land in Dartmoor National Park over which a group of around 850 landowners, known as ‘commoners’, have certain rights, which include grazing rights and the rights to keep sheep, cattle […]
- [Toxic lead ammunition banned to protect Britain’s countryside](https://tempo.samkilday.com/toxic-lead-ammunition-banned-to-protect-britains-countryside/): PRESS RELEASE FROM DEFRA, 10 JULY 2025: Toxic lead ammunition banned to protect Britain’s countryside Red kites and white-tailed eagles will receive greater protection thanks to new restrictions on the use of lead in ammunition, Environment Minister Emma Hardy announced today (Thursday 10 July 2025). To protect iconic British wildlife and clean up the nation’s waterways, new measures will ban shot containing more than 1% lead and bullets with a lead content of more than 3%. Beyond limited exemptions, these types of ammunition will no longer be sold to the public. The ban will prevent the release of an estimated […]
- [Waking the Dragon -A community fighting to protect Ceibwr Bay](https://tempo.samkilday.com/waking-the-dragon-a-community-fighting-to-protect-ceibwr-bay/): Protecting Ceibwr – by Gill Lewis, with the help and contributions from many residents of the community of Moylgrove and Ceibwr. To any visitor to North Pembrokeshire, Moylgrove appears to be a sleepy coastal village, nestling in a wooded valley that runs down to the rocky inlet of Ceibwr Bay. However, despite its bucolic slumbering charm, Moylgrove has a thriving community of residents who are welcoming to the many visitors who come to enjoy the remote wild beauty, yet fiercely proud and protective of the wildlife we are privileged to have here. For over a decade, the community has been […]
- [Our Pembrokeshire case in the courts](https://tempo.samkilday.com/our-pembrokeshire-case-in-the-courts/): Community thoughts on the Judicial Review of the Pembrokeshire Coastal National Park Authority (PCNPA) planning decision to approve an outdoor activity adventure hub at Moylgrove. By Gill Lewis and Dagmarr Moore This judicial review has been a milestone date in the diary for the majority of the residents of Moylgrove. Our community has been raising concerns for over a decade about the detrimental impact that coasteering is having upon the integrity of this Special Area of Conservation and SSSI. We felt that our voices were not being heard, and we were thrilled that Wild Justice joined our fight and sought […]
- [Please ask your MP to attend the debate on banning driven grouse shooting - Westminster Hall, 30 June 2025, 4.30pm](https://tempo.samkilday.com/please-ask-your-mp-to-attend-the-debate-on-banning-driven-grouse-shooting-westminster-hall-30-june-2025-4-30pm/): You will remember that we asked you to sign our most recent petition to ban driven grouse shooting and over 100,000 of you did so – thank you!  Thanks to your tremendous response, this issue is once again the subject of a parliamentary debate at Westminster Hall on Monday 30 June 2025, starting at 4.30pm. This will be the third time a petition calling for a ban has passed 100,000 signatures (we’re a tenacious bunch!) but it’ll be the first debate under a Labour government and is therefore an opportunity for Labour to show its environmental credentials at a time […]
- [Wild Justice presses ahead with legal challenge against the government's Planning and Infrastructure Bill](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justice-presses-ahead-with-legal-challenge-against-the-governments-planning-and-infrastructure-bill/): PRESS RELEASE: Conservation campaign group Wild Justice has issued a legal challenge to the government’s claim that the new Planning and Infrastructure Bill would not reduce environmental protections. The judicial review challenge will look to correct a statement made in Parliament and in official guidance by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner in April 2025, who said that the bill would not reduce the level of environmental protection in law. In May, Wild Justice sent a pre-action protocol letter to the government in a first step towards legal action, arguing that the statement was not correct. Now, the group has filed […]
- [Badger crowdfunder receives magnificent response](https://tempo.samkilday.com/badger-crowdfunder-receives-magnificent-response/): We recently launched a crowdfunder to support the legal challenge we are taking, in partnership with our friends at The Badger Trust, to challenge the supplementary Badger cull licences issued by Natural England (see here for background to the case). Our crowdfunding target is ambitious – £52,486 – because we need to cover the legal costs of both organisations rather than just our own. In our newsletter yesterday, we asked our fabulous supporters to help us to help Badgers, and we’ve been overwhelmed with the response! We raised over £30,000 in just one day and our crowdfunder currently stands at […]
- [Legal challenge against badger culling licences given green light to proceed](https://tempo.samkilday.com/legal-challenge-against-badger-culling-licences-given-green-light-to-proceed/): A legal challenge by wildlife groups The Badger Trust and Wild Justice against the granting of badger culling licences has been given permission to be heard in the High Court. The 26 supplementary licences were granted by Natural England against advice from its own scientists and allowed farmers to kill badgers between June and November 2024. The Badger Trust and Wild Justice argue that the licences were granted unlawfully to help maintain the confidence of the farming community, rather than for the proper purpose in law of preventing the spread of disease. Applications for the 26 culling licences were submitted […]
- [Please respond to a public consultation on heather and grass burning in England](https://tempo.samkilday.com/please-respond-to-a-public-consultation-on-heather-and-grass-burning-in-england/): The UK Government recently announced a public consultation on proposed changes to The Heather and Grass etc Burning (England) Regulations 2021.   This is an important area of policy for us because England’s peatlands are of huge international importance. 80% of them are currently degraded, with rotational burning (typically on moorland managed for driven grouse shooting) being a contributory factor in the uplands. Protecting peat from further damage is crucial to its restoration and recovery. Today we’re asking you, please, to respond to the consultation. The consultation closes at 11.59 pm on Sunday 25 May 2025. It isn’t a long […]
- [Wild Justice starts legal proceedings against Government’s controversial Planning and Infrastructure Bill](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justice-starts-legal-proceedings-against-governments-controversial-planning-and-infrastructure-bill/): Conservation campaign group Wild Justice has written to the government calling on it to correct a statement made in Parliament about the controversial new Planning and Infrastructure Bill. Wild Justice says the bill would remove environmental protections that exist under current law, contrary to a claim by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner that the bill would not reduce the level of protection. The bill was introduced to Parliament in March 2025, with the government claiming that it would slash delivery time for infrastructure projects. In a statement to Parliament that month, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local […]
- [Wild Justice Forensics Fund supports 68 police investigations into suspected raptor persecution](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justice-forensics-fund-supports-68-police-investigations-into-suspected-raptor-persecution/): In October 2020, Wild Justice established a Raptor Forensics Fund to help support forensic testing in police investigations concerned with bird of prey persecution. Additional funding support was provided by The Northern England Raptor Forum, Tayside & Fife Raptor Study Group, Devon Birds, Rare Bird Alert and a number of individuals who wish to remain anonymous. Our fund is administered solely by the PAW Forensic Working Group (a sub-group of the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime) and is open to any regional or national statutory agency in the UK. For further details please visit the PAW Forensic Working Group […]
- [Wild Justice slams environmental provisions in government’s new Planning and Infrastructure Bill ](https://tempo.samkilday.com/planning-and-infrastructure-bill-a-legal-opinion/): Wild Justice slams environmental provisions in government’s new Planning and Infrastructure Bill  Conservation campaign group Wild Justice has slammed the environmental provisions in the government’s new Planning and Infrastructure Bill (PIB), arguing that it will erase the level of environmental protection provided by existing law.  This counters the government’s claim that the bill will not reduce the level of protection, an opinion for which Wild Justice says there is no legal rationale and will result in developers effectively being given a licence to damage protected habitats and species without meaningful consequence.   Under existing planning law, certain habitats that are home […]
- [Private Eye and unpleasant Pheasant facts 2.](https://tempo.samkilday.com/private-eye-and-unpleasant-pheasant-facts-2/): This, you might remember, was the advertisement we placed in Private Eye recently. We were surprised to be told by Private Eye that they wouldn’t publish the next two adverts we had planned – they wouldn’t tell us why. In the next issue of Private Eye were three letters slagging us off – click here.  But then in the last (current) issue of Private Eye the magazine attempted to justify its position but also printed this page of letters supporting Wild Justice’s advert; It was pretty sporting of Private Eye to publish so many letters supporting Wild Justice and the […]
- [Ban driven grouse shooting petition - 101,000 signatures! Thank you!](https://tempo.samkilday.com/ban-driven-grouse-shooting-petition-101000-signatures-thank-you/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition has passed the milestone of 100,000 signatures and is now standing at over 101,000 signatures. 100,000 signatures is the level that normally triggers a parliamentary debate on a subject. Thank you to all who have signed – here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 Since the Westminster petitions process reopened after the general election, 1,686 petitions have been published. Of those 1,686 petitions, only 83 have so far passed the 10,000 signature threshold which generates a response from government. Only 15 petitions have, so far, passed the 100,000 signature threshold. Of those 1,686 published petitions (and […]
- [Private Eye and unpleasant Pheasant facts.](https://tempo.samkilday.com/private-eye-is-blind-to-the-facts-about-pheasants/): This, you might remember, was the advertisement we placed in Private Eye recently. We were surprised to be told by Private Eye that they wouldn’t publish the next two adverts we had planned – they wouldn’t tell us why. Maybe  Private Eye was leant on and gave in to pressure – we don’t know, but the fact that Private Eye didn’t explain their decision was a bit odd. In the most recent edition there were three letters about our advert. Maybe they give some clues. One was this anonymous attack: Another was a poor attempt at humour from BASC: BASC […]
- [Ban driven grouse shooting petition - 85,000 signatures](https://tempo.samkilday.com/ban-driven-grouse-shooting-petition-85000-signatures/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition has passed the milestone of 85,000 signatures and is now standing at over 88,000 signatures. Fewer than 12,000 signatures, by 22 May, will trigger a parliamentary debate on the subject – that is a very feasible 256 signatures every day. Thank you to all who have signed – here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 Since the Westminster petitions process reopened after the general election, 3,523 petitions have been submitted of which 2,021 have been rejected as not meeting the criteria for such petitions and 1,502 petitions have been published. Of those 1,502 petitions, only 71 […]
- [Ban driven grouse shooting petition - 75,000 signatures](https://tempo.samkilday.com/ban-driven-grouse-shooting-petition-75000-signatures/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition has reached the important milestone of 75,000 signatures. 25,000 more signatures, by 22 May, will secure a parliamentary debate. Thank you to all who have signed – here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 Since the Westminster petitions process reopened after the general election, 2,533 petitions have been submitted of which 1,421 have been rejected as not meeting the criteria for such petitions and 1,112 petitions have been published. Of those 1,112 petitions, only 63 have so far passed the 10,000 signature threshold which generates a response from government (see below for more on this). Of […]
- [Wild Justice appoints first Chief Executive](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justice-appoints-first-chief-executive/): Conservation campaign group Wild Justice has appointed Bob Elliot as its first Chief Executive. Bob has worked in the nature conservation and animal welfare sector for over 30 years and will be joining from the Scotland-based charity OneKind where he has worked as CEO for the last seven years. Prior to that, Bob worked as Head of Investigations at the RSPB for over 10 years as well as other roles with The National Trust for Scotland and The Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park. Commenting on his appointment, Bob said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be joining Wild Justice and […]
- [How low will they go? Caught in the act](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-caught-in-the-act/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? An unfair advantage](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-an-unfair-advantage/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? A red herring](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-a-red-herring/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? A toxic environment](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-a-toxic-environment/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? A barbaric crime](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-a-barbaric-crime/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? Under the boot](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-under-the-boot/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [Ban driven grouse shooting petition - 10  February update](https://tempo.samkilday.com/ban-driven-grouse-shooting-petition-10-february-update/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition is flying with very nearly 62,000 signatures. Thank you to all who have signed – here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 Since the Westminster petitions process reopened after the general election, 1,638 petitions have been submitted of which 844 have been rejected as not meeting the criteria for such petitions and 794 petitions have been published. Of those 794 petitions, only 47 have so far passed the 10,000 signature threshold which generates a response from government (see below for more on this). Of those 794 published petitions (and of the current top 47 which have […]
- [How low will they go? A double whammy](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-a-double-whammy/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? An ambush](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-an-ambush/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? Nowhere is safe](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-nowhere-is-safe/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? Faking it; death by decoy](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-faking-it-death-by-decoy/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? The indiscriminate persecutors](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-the-indiscriminate-persecutors/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [How low will they go? Shooting a sleeping beauty](https://tempo.samkilday.com/how-low-will-they-go-shooting-a-sleeping-beauty/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor (bird of prey) killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. Incidents of the illegal persecution of raptors on driven grouse moors are well documented and ongoing. They’re also woefully under-punished, with prosecutions few and far between, largely due to the difficulty of securing sufficient evidence and/or witnesses in remote locations.  The cases that […]
- [Ban driven grouse shooting petition - 6 February update](https://tempo.samkilday.com/ban-driven-grouse-shooting-petition-29-jan-update/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition is flying with over 55,000 signatures. Thank you to all who have signed – here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 Since the Westminster petitions process reopened after the general election, 1,599 petitions have been submitted of which 823 have been rejected as not meeting the criteria for such petitions and 776 petitions have been published. Of those 697 petitions, only 45 have so far passed the 10,000 signature threshold which generates a response from government (see below for more on this). Of those 776 published petitions (and of the current top 45 which have passed […]
- [Raptor killing on grouse moors - Hen Harriers](https://tempo.samkilday.com/raptor-killing-on-grouse-moors-hen-harriers/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. We will talk a lot over the next few weeks, while our petition to ban driven grouse shooting is running – click here – about the many different reasons for wanting driven grouse shooting banned – see our blog for a list – but let’s start […]
- [Raptor killing on grouse moors - Peregrines](https://tempo.samkilday.com/raptor-killing-on-grouse-moors-peregrines/): Introduction The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. We will talk a lot over the next few weeks, while our petition to ban driven grouse shooting is running – click here – about the many different reasons for wanting driven grouse shooting banned – see our blog for a list – but let’s […]
- [Raptor killing on grouse moors - Golden Eagles](https://tempo.samkilday.com/raptor-killing-on-grouse-moors-golden-eagles/): The grouse shooting industry doesn’t like to talk about raptor killing because it’s wildlife crime. It’s not good for an industry which supplies an expensive leisure activity to be underpinned by criminal activity. There are many reasons for wanting change (we’d say a ban) of driven grouse shooting and criminality is one of them. We will talk a lot over the next few weeks, while our petition to ban driven grouse shooting is running – click here – about the many different reasons for wanting driven grouse shooting banned – see our blog for a list – but let’s start […]
- [Driven grouse shooting - what it is and why it must be banned.](https://tempo.samkilday.com/driven-grouse-shooting-what-is-it-is-and-why-it-must-be-banned/): Wild Justice is campaigning for driven grouse shooting to be banned. Our petition to get driven grouse shooting banned is fast approaching 62,000 signatures and if it reaches 100,000 by 22 May then it will be debated in parliament. This post sets out the reasons why people are joining together to call for a ban of this out dated so-called sport. If, after reading it, you agree, then the link to the petition is at the end of this post – thank you! Driven grouse shooting is a hobby – it is killing wildlife for fun – which takes place […]
- [Ban driven grouse shooting - we pass 47,000 signatures](https://tempo.samkilday.com/ban-driven-grouse-shooting-we-pass-47000-signatures/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition is flying with over 47,000 signatures. Thank you to all who have signed – here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 Since the Westminster petitions process reopened after the general election, 1286 petitions have been submitted of which 666 have been rejected as not meeting the criteria for such petitions and 620 petitions have been published. Of those 620 petitions, only 37 have so far passed the 10,000 signature threshold which generates a response from government (see below for more on this). Of those 620 published petitions (and of the current top 37 which have passed […]
- [The RSPB on grouse shooting](https://tempo.samkilday.com/the-rspb-on-grouse-shooting/): We are often asked why the RSPB does not support our petition (and previous ones) to ban driven grouse shooting. We are still in discussions with the RSPB on whether they might be helpful on this subject but time is slipping by. It’s not really for us to make the RSPB’s case for them so, with the RSPB’s permission (from the Chief Executive Beccy Speight, no less) we can give you an email address where you can ask the RSPB what they think or tell the RSPB what you think. Your email (or you could write to the Chief Executive […]
- [An awful government response to our petition](https://tempo.samkilday.com/an-awful-government-response-to-our-petition/): Wild Justice is campaigning to ban driven grouse shooting. Our petition for a ban is fast-approaching 50,000 signatures and has recently received a badly-written, evasive and factually inaccurate response from the current government. When a petition to the UK parliament passes 10,000 signatures then this triggers a policy response from government (on the webpage of the petition – click here). Our petition passed 10,000 signatures in a couple of days but was waiting for over seven weeks for a response which came last week. Was it worth waiting for? Well, yes, but only because it showed that on this subject, […]
- [Our letter to Defra about lead ammunition](https://tempo.samkilday.com/our-letter-to-defra-about-lead-ammunition/): At the end of 2024 Wild Justice wrote to Steve Reed MP, the Secretary of State (SoS) for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs about lead ammunition. Our letter concerned the Health and Safety Executive’s proposals to restrict the use of lead ammunition in Great Britain. In mid December the HSE published an ‘Opinion on the Proposal for a Restriction’, in which they proposed several measures to restrict the use and sale of lead ammunition. If upon receipt of the HSE’s opinions it is deemed that there are unacceptable risks to human health or the environment from use of lead […]
- [Wild Justice's 2024 - our year in review](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justices-2024-our-year-in-review/): It’s been another busy year for Wild Justice; here’s a very quick run through some of our highlights of 2024. We started off with some positive news – and followed it with some positive action. In January this year we learned Wild Justice had been voted Conservation Hero for 2023 by readers of Birdwatch magazine. In February, our hardworking team packaged and posted 1,164 books to 97 schools across the UK. All books were titles in nature and wildlife writing, aimed at a range of reading ages, and were sent to schools nominated by our supporters. By March, Badgers were […]
- [May your days be merry...](https://tempo.samkilday.com/may-your-days-be-merry/): …and wild! Wishing you a Merry Christmas from the small team of us here at Wild Justice!
- [Ban driven grouse shooting - we pass 32,000 signatures](https://tempo.samkilday.com/ban-driven-grouse-shooting-we-pass-32000-signatures/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition is flying with over 32,000 signatures. Thank you to all who have signed – here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 Here’s the signature map, by Westminster constituency, from yesterday evening: Here are the top 10 scoring constituencies (although they do change a bit from day to day): Derbyshire Dales (Lab) 254 signatures High Peak (Lab) 215 signatures Sheffield Hallam (Lab) 210 signatures Skipton and Ripon (Con) 199 signatures Westmorland and Lonsdale (LibDem) 171 signatures Thirsk and Malton (Con) 167 signatures Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey (SNP) 161 signatures Ceredigion Preseli (Plaid) 158 signatures Caithness, Sutherland […]
- [Leaden progress](https://tempo.samkilday.com/leaden-progress/): It looks as though we are moving, oh so slowly, towards the removal of lead ammunition from most of UK shooting. The Health and Safety Executive published their proposals to restrict the sale and use of lead ammunition at the end of last week – click here. At first look these seem pretty good, and better than previous proposals. It’s not quite an all-out ban on lead ammunition, but it is very close to that. These recommendations are based on environmental and public health issues surrounding lead ammunition use. It is shocking that most of the shooting industry seems to […]
- [Rodenticides - our report stimulates some movement](https://tempo.samkilday.com/rodenticides-our-report-stimulates-some-movement/): Our recent report Collateral Damage showed that the Rodenticide Stewardship Regime (or scheme) is failing. It was supposed to lead to a reduction in exposure of wildlife to rat poisons and instead exposure has risen. That’s a ‘fail’ however you look at it. But the publication of Collateral Damage and many Wild Justice supporters writing to their MPs has led to a spate of parliamentary questions and answers on this subject. Questions were asked by Satvir Kaur MP, Alex Mayer MP, Suella Braverman MP, Mark Pritchard MP, Alistair Strathern MP, and Chris Hinchcliff MP. The questions were answered by two […]
- [Lost Nature - how the report was received](https://tempo.samkilday.com/lost-nature-how-the-report-was-received/): We published the Lost Nature report last week, which was written by researchers at the University of Sheffield and showed that house builders fail to include nature-friendly measures into new housing developments – even those required by the planning process. The timing of the report was partly, but not entirely, luck – it coincided with government announcements about reducing the barriers to house building, which blamed nature for being in the way! When Angela Rayner said that ‘…newts can’t be more protected than people who need housing‘ we’re not sure whether she meant homeless people or rich housing developers, but […]
- [Lost Nature - housing developers fail to deliver their ecological commitments.](https://tempo.samkilday.com/lost-nature-report/): Below you will find two versions of the Lost Nature report; a summary version (20 pages) and a full report (72 pages). You will also find our press release about the research at the end of this web page. 1. Lost Nature – The Summary Report: 2. Lost Nature – the full report. 3. Lost Nature: house builders fail to deliver required wildlife benefits A survey of new housing developments reveals that developers are installing just half of the ecological features that they should be.   Skylark Close, Foxglove Avenue – we’re all familiar with street names that give a […]
- [Wild Justice sponsors UK Wildlife Crime Enforcers' Conference 2024](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justice-sponsors-uk-wildlife-crime-enforcers-conference-2024/): Wildlife crime is an issue close to the heart of Wild Justice – indeed, the frustration we felt after the collapse of a number of prosecutions in short succession, related to the illegal killing of birds of prey, was what motivated us to set up Wild Justice in 2018. We have supported wildlife crime enforcement in a number of ways since then, including the establishment of a forensics fund to support UK police investigations in to alleged offences of raptor persecution, which has helped to secure the convictions of at least four gamekeepers. We also offered a reward for information […]
- [Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition is flying](https://tempo.samkilday.com/our-ban-driven-grouse-shooting-petition-is-flying/): Our Ban Driven Grouse Shooting petition is flying with over 24,000 signatures. Thank you to all who have signed – now please find a few friends to sign as well. Here is the link https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/700036 It’s fun (we enjoy it anyway) to see where the signatures come from and the parliament website maps these by constituency. Here’s the map from yesterday: Also, we keep an eye on which are the most productive constituencies and even though the boundaries of some changed at the general election we see some old favourites. Here are the top 10 scoring constituencies (although they do […]
- [Collateral Damage - The Rodenticide Stewardship Scheme - is it working?](https://tempo.samkilday.com/collateral-damage/)
- [An open letter to the Charity Commission](https://tempo.samkilday.com/an-open-letter-to-the-charity-commission/): Dear Charity Commission, we are writing to you from Wild Justice, a nearly-six-year old not-for-profit company whose objects are: We may seek charitable status at some stage in the future and your response may inform that decision. Now the general election is over, we can look back on this period and assess the performance of environmental charities. As a generalisation, we feel that, as usual during general election periods, and formerly during European elections, and most certainly during the Brexit Referendum, environmental charities are timid and hardly say boo to any geese. We feel, in Wild Justice, that the party […]
- [A flawed planning decision on the Pembrokeshire coast](https://tempo.samkilday.com/a-flawed-planning-decision-on-the-pembrokeshire-coast/): On Wednesday, the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park approved a planning proposal for a visitor centre, an adventure sports hub, for ‘coasteering’. Coasteering (click here) is ‘getting up close and personal with wildlife’ and that can create problems if the wildlife doesn’t want such attention. Because the proposed development could affect several sites designated for their high wildlife value, most notably the Cardigan Bay Special Area of Conservation (click here), something called a Habitats Regulation Assessment (HRA) had to be made. That assessment admitted that the proposed development would have an impact on wildlife but we believe that its impact could […]
- [Wild Justice's response to the National Planning Policy Framework consultation](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justices-response-to-the-national-planning-policy-framework-consultation/): One of the first acts of the new Labour government has been to signal that it wants more houses built in England and it is looking to make that process easier. Wild Justice has no problem with that in principle but the devil is in the detail and making it easier to pour concrete means changing planning policy and that might have much larger implications that just for the housing sector. Planning policy isn’t our area of expertise so we worked with a range of experts to submit a response to the consultation. Our response is below and the consultation […]
- [Press Release: Wild Justice lodges complaint about Waitrose and Marks & Spencer selling gamebirds contaminated with toxic lead shot](https://tempo.samkilday.com/press-release-wild-justice-lodges-complaint-about-waitrose-and-marks-spencer-selling-gamebirds-contaminated-with-toxic-lead-shot/): Environmental campaign group Wild Justice has lodged a complaint to the Competition and Marketing Authority about false claims made by Waitrose and Marks & Spencer in relation to selling game meat contaminated with toxic lead shot. Maximum legal lead levels are set for meats such as beef, pork, chicken etc. but not, utterly bizarrely, for game meat, even though the Food Standards Agency warns that, ‘Eating lead-shot game regularly can expose you to potentially harmful levels of lead. Those who eat lead-shot game should be aware of the negative health effects and try to minimise exposure. Exposure to lead can […]
- [Waitrose still selling gamebirds contaminated with toxic lead shot, despite telling customers it only stocks lead-free gamebirds](https://tempo.samkilday.com/waitrose-still-selling-gamebirds-contaminated-with-toxic-lead-shot-despite-telling-customers-it-only-stocks-lead-free-gamebirds/): Lead is a poison and has been removed from many formerly common uses such as for water pipes and fishing weights, and in petrol and paints. But it is still legal to use lead ammunition to shoot gamebirds in the UK such as Pheasant, Red-legged Partridge, Grey Partridge and Red Grouse. Maximum lead levels are set for meats such as beef, pork, chicken etc. but not, utterly bizarrely, for game meat. The maximum legal lead level for most meats (other than gamebirds) in the UK is 0.1mg of lead per kg of meat, measured as wet weight (ww). Following widespread […]
- [Natural England attacks the principles of the Aarhus Convention](https://tempo.samkilday.com/natural-england-attacks-the-principles-of-the-aarhus-convention/): Wild Justice and Badger Trust are mounting a legal challenge against the decision of Natural England (NE) to issue licences for Badger culling, made after pressure from the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) under the previous government. NE has asked the Court to increase the normal adverse cost cap (what you pay if you lose the case) from £10,000 to £20,000 for Wild Justice and from £10,000 to £30,000 for Badger Trust. The Aarhus Convention (to which the UK is a party) exists to protect citizens’ access to information, access to decision-making and access to justice. Taking […]
- [Natural England and Thursley Common](https://tempo.samkilday.com/natural-england-and-thursley-common/): This was the scene on a Surrey heathland managed by Natural England – a heath with a panoply of designations to protect its wildlife from harm – one evening in June this year. The evening before, a group of local birdwatchers had been watching Nightjars feeding over this very spot. We are told that on the nights after this event no Nightjars were seen. This site is also home to Woodlarks and Dartford Warblers as well as a variety of reptiles including Adders. NE decided that such filming – on several nights and in several places – would not significantly […]
- [Dartmoor - commonly badly managed](https://tempo.samkilday.com/dartmoor-commonly-badly-managed/): This blog provides background to our legal challenge of the Dartmoor Commoners’ Council – see previous blogs here (22 July) and here (30 August). The background to our legal challenge is that the UK has signed up to having 30% of our land area protected for wildlife by 2030 – that’s not far away. Dartmoor is, in theory, a protected area already but it is widely acknowledged that it is underperforming in terms of protecting the natural beauty and wildlife of this area. A range of bodies ought to be ensuring that Dartmoor’s wildlife prospers including Natural England (NE), its […]
- [Wild Justice challenges Dartmoor Commoners’ Council in High Court to tackle deterioration of wildlife habitats  ](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justice-challenges-dartmoor-commoners-council-in-high-court-to-tackle-deterioration-of-wildlife-habitats/): Wild Justice is taking High Court action in a bid to make the guardians of Dartmoor common land ensure the commons are brought back into favourable condition, which will include tackling the destructive effects of over grazing.  The not-for-profit company says the solution to the poor state of wildlife on Dartmoor is not another “talking shop” as recommended in the government’s response to the Fursdon Review earlier this year.  Instead, Wild Justice says the Dartmoor Commoners’ Council  (DCC) should use the powers it has been granted by Parliament to enforce measures to bring Dartmoor’s wildlife back into the state demanded by […]
- [Taking the next step with our badger cull challenge](https://tempo.samkilday.com/taking-the-next-step-with-our-badger-cull-challenge/): Today we’ve announced we’re taking the next steps in our legal challenge of badger culls, alongside the Badger Trust. See the press release from our lawyers, Leigh Day, below. Wildlife groups Badger Trust and Wild Justice have begun a legal challenge after the government’s nature conservation agency Natural England issued additional badger culling licences against scientific advice from its own experts. The 26 supplementary badger cull licences authorise farmers to kill badgers from June to November, despite Natural England’s director of science advising that there was “no justification” for the action. Natural England stated that one of its reasons for […]
- [We're challenging over-grazing on Dartmoor](https://tempo.samkilday.com/were-challenging-over-grazing-on-dartmoor/): Today we share the news that we’re beginning a challenge concerning the over-grazing of Dartmoor’s commons. You can read the press release from our lawyers, Leigh Day, below. Wild Justice set to challenge over-grazing of Dartmoor Special Area of Conservation Wild Justice is challenging the over-grazing of Dartmoor’s commons to try to help internationally important areas of heathland back into favourable condition. The organisation has written to the Dartmoor Commoners’ Council (DCC) – the body responsible for managing livestock levels on the Dartmoor Special Area of Conservation (SAC) – calling for commoners (people who hold rights of grazing on common […]
- [Disturbance of Surrey heathland - what can you tell us, please?](https://tempo.samkilday.com/disturbance-of-surrey-heathland-what-can-you-tell-us-please/): Wild Justice has received information about an event on a Surrey lowland heath (which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a Special Protection Area and a Special Area of Conservation). Schedule 1 species such as Woodlark and Dartford Warbler are feared to have been disturbed during mid-late June through commercial activity as well as Nightjar, a pair of which were known to have been using this area. We have written to Natural England to ask them what they know of this event, what action (if any) they are taking and whether they were involved in encouraging or permitting this […]
- [Wild Justice & Badger Trust set to challenge supplementary Badger cull](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wild-justice-badger-trust-set-to-challenge-supplementary-badger-cull/): Wild Justice and our friends at the Badger Trust have joined forces to send a formal legal letter to Natural England about its decision in May 2024 to grant nine new Supplementary Badger Cull licences and to authorise 17 existing licenses, which was contrary to the scientific advice of Natural England’s own Director of Science, Dr Peter Brotherton. According to documents seen by Wild Justice and the Badger Trust, Dr Brotherton had advised Natural England that he’d found “no justification for authorising further supplementary Badger culls in 2024 for the purpose of preventing the spread of disease and recommend[ed] against […]
- [Guest election blog - Alliance Party by Dara McAnulty](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-alliance-party-by-dara-mcanulty/): I am an author and environmental activist from Northern Ireland who believes that the environment must be protected both to help preserve the natural world and to protect the people who live in it. In the past, I have participated in a local Stormont election where my single transferable vote preferences included Alliance party, Sinn Fein, Green Party and the SDLP. I am not a member of any party and have no real political connections other than support for parties that I believe can make a positive impact on the natural world and help people live in mutual coexistence. This […]
- [Guest election blog - Social Democratic and Labour Party by Dara McAnulty](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-social-democratic-and-labour-party-by-dara-mcanulty/): I am an author and environmental activist from Northern Ireland who believes that the environment must be protected both to help preserve the natural world and to protect the people who live in it. In the past, I have participated in a local Stormont election where my single transferable vote preferences included Alliance Party, Sinn Fein, Green Party and the Social Democratic and Labour Party. I am not a member of any party and have no real political connections other than support for parties that I believe can make a positive impact on the natural world and help people live […]
- [Guest election blog - Labour by Caroline Lucas](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-labour-by-caroline-lucas/): I’m the former MP for Brighton Pavilion and the UK’s first Green MP. I’ve been Chair of the Climate Change All-Party Parliamentary Group and an active member of the Environmental Audit Select Committee. I’m also a former leader of the Green Party of England and Wales and was previously a Member of the European Parliament for ten years. Unsurprisingly, I’m a longtime Green voter. My lightbulb moment first came nearly 40 years ago when I bought a copy of Seeing Green by Jonathan Porritt and started to fully appreciate the need for a party political expression of the environmental movement. Since then, […]
- [Guest election blog - Recent past and impending future by Ben Goldsmith](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-recent-past-and-impending-future-by-ben-goldsmith/): Ben Goldsmith is an environmentalist and financier who manages the investment firm Menhaden which focuses on energy and resource efficiency as well as Nattergal Ltd, a new venture focused on large-scale ecosystem restoration. The Goldsmith family has been active in environmental causes with his late father, James, campaigning against genetically modified crops and globalised free trade; his uncle Teddy, co-founder of the Green Party and The Ecologist magazine; and his elder brother Zac being a government minister, including in Defra. Ben was a non-executive member of Defra’s Board for several years. He is a strong advocate for rewilding and changes to agriculture.   […]
- [Guest election blog - You can bet on this! by Chris Packham](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-you-can-bet-on-this-by-chris-packham/): Chris Packham is many things, including a co-founder and co-director of Wild Justice. Here he writes in a personal capacity. (To the tune of Queen’s ‘It’s a Kind of Magic’) It’s a kind of chaos . . . It’s a kind of chaos . . . It’s a kind of chaos (Only instead of being an uplifting 1980’s anthem this is a 2020’s statement of abject misery – more Morrissey than Mercury) But it’s true, and you don’t need me to tell you that, either from the political or environmental point of view. But just in case you have been […]
- [Guest election blog - Conservatives by Derek Gow](https://tempo.samkilday.com/draft-guest-election-blog-conservatives-by-derek-gow/): I am a wildlife ecologist who has worked on reintroduction projects for species such as the water vole, Eurasian beaver and the white stork. I have written three books, the last of which – The Hunt for The Shadow Wolf – was published by Chelsea Green in March 2024.  This is my third manifesto review to date – it’s the Tories and I just can’t summon a hip hooray that’s honest – so shall we move on with it ? Before we start with anything relevant, let me tell you my own personal Boris story, as it illuminates quite aptly […]
- [Guest election blog - The Green Party by Jasmine Isa Qureshi](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-greens-by-jasmine-isa-qureshi-they-she/): I am a transdisciplinary ecologist, multimedia journalist, marine biologist, poet, researcher and writer. I have worked / published across multiple topics including conservation practice, ecology, identity, race and sexuality, worked with collectives and campaigns as a facilitator and educator, and I’m an ambassador for the Bumblebee Conservation Trust and Green Jobs for Nature. I sit on the advisory committee for RSPB England and I’m the Communications lead for Wildcard (a grassroots rewilding organisation). Voting actually never appealed to me when I was younger.  I grew up in the shadow of disparity in inner city London, watching the dismal legacy of […]
- [Guest election blog - SNP by Lucy Lapwing Hodson](https://tempo.samkilday.com/draft-guest-election-blog-snp-by-lucy-lapwing-hodson/): SNP manifesto – by Lucy Lapwing I am an environmental campaigner, writer, amateur-ish naturalist and enthusiastic toad-tickler. I worked in the conservation sector for eight years, and now work with Wild Justice on their campaigns. I also write about wildlife, organise other campaigns and events, and work a bit in wildlife telly. I first voted in the 2010 general election, and awoke on May 7th to a Conservative government just a month after my nineteenth birthday, which was excellent… I joined the Labour Party aged 16, and have voted Labour in every general election since. I sat a term as a […]
- [Guest election blog - Labour by Samuel Lindsay](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-labour-by-samuel-lindsay/): I am a forest ranger and ecologist based on the west coast of Scotland. My role integrates engaging all levels of the community with their local natural spaces while still managing these areas for conservation. I have studied zoology, ecology and conservation and am deeply passionate about the nature the UK has to offer.  I have previously voted for the Labour or SNP parties as they more closely align with my views than other prominent parties. Although I agree with many of the stances taken by the Green Party, they have not been viable options in the area where I […]
- [Guest election blog - Plaid Cymru by Gill Lewis](https://tempo.samkilday.com/later-election-guest-blog-plaid-cymru-by-gill-lewis/): Gill Lewis is a children’s author, vet and environmental campaigner. She writes books about animals and our human relationship with the wild world. Her books have won the US Green Earth Book Award (twice), German Prize for Environmental Youth Literature and she has been awarded the Little Rebels Special Commendation for her contribution to political/radical children’s fiction. She has been a regular supporter of Hen Harrier Day and has written two books about the driven grouse issues – Sky Dancer and Eagle Warrior. Lewis founded and judges Hen Harrier Action’s Young Wild Writer Competition.   Lewis’ next book Rescue at […]
- [Guest election blog - Labour by Dominic Woodfield](https://tempo.samkilday.com/draft-guest-election-blog-labour-by-dominic-woodfield/): I write this manifesto review from both a personal and professional perspective, being an ecologist by profession, a conservationist by heart, and a practitioner operating for thirty years in that tricky zone where environmental protection and economic growth interface and often collide through the prism of planning policy and decisions, and environmental regulation.  In past general elections I have variously voted Labour, Green and (on one occasion) Lib Dem, largely depending on where either my heart or tactical expedience led me. On July 4th I expect it will be one of those three again, albeit as I seem to be […]
- [Guest election blog - A legal manifesto for wildlife by Carol Day](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-a-legal-manifesto-for-wildlife-by-carol-day/): Carol Day is a part-time solicitor with public interest law firm Leigh Day. For one day a week, she works for the RSPB on access to environmental justice. I’ve been asked to set out what I would include if I was fortunate enough to be drafting a manifesto for environmental lawyers – the key question being how can the law best address the crises of habitat loss, species extinction, raw sewage in rivers, polluted air and the devastating impacts of climate change? Being an Aarhus nerd, I’d start with an Environmental Rights Bill (ERB) to enshrine in law a right […]
- [Guest election blog - Conservatives by Chantal Woodun](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-conservatives-by-chantal-woodun/): My interest in the natural world led me to study Zoology and Psychology as a first degree, followed by International Studies, focusing on the environment and environmental policy. Nature disconnection is a serious concern and in an attempt to do something about it, I became a London National Park City Ranger in 2020. Combined with my @wanderfulldn Instagram account, I draw attention to the vast array of blue and green space across our capital and beyond, whilst trying to show the benefits to our physical and mental health. I also work with the campaign to save the glorious Warren Farm […]
- [Guest election blog - Green Party by Indy Kiemel Greene](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-green-party-by-indy-kiemel-greene/): I am a 19 year old conservationist and naturalist.  I studied Countryside Management at Nottingham Trent University. This will be my first election where I am eligible to vote. Wildlife and the environment are high on my list of priorities. They will be a contributing factor when I place my vote in the Mansfield constituency. This is my review and thoughts about the environmental implications of the Green Party of England and Wales election manifesto. Things I like: Things I don’t like: The Greens are so committed to green issues that it would seem a little harsh to be too […]
- [Guest election blog - Green Party by Alexander Lees](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-green-party-by-alexander-lees/): I am an academic (Reader in Biodiversity) at Manchester Metropolitan University. In national elections I have voted for Labour since eligible (2001), although I am not wedded to the idea of continuing to do so. Locally, I am more pragmatic, and happy to vote for whoever is likely to win and commit to improving the local socioecological system. I should probably make more of an effort to be involved in the political sphere in the UK (much of my policy-relevant conservation work is focussed overseas) but have met with my High Peak constituency MP (a Tory whom I didn’t vote […]
- [Guest election blog - Labour by Guy Shrubsole](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-labour-by-guy-shrubsole/): . I’m an environmental campaigner and author of The Lost Rainforests of Britain and Who Owns England?, and the forthcoming book The Lie of the Land. My politics are what the climate campaigner Leo Murray calls the ‘free-range left’: lefty, green, pluralist and free-roaming. I’ll be voting in the constituency of South Devon on 4 July. This is my review of the environmental implications of the Labour Party’s election manifesto, plus the nature policies it trailed prior to publishing its manifesto. Things I like: Things I don’t like: Things that appear to be missing: Overall assessment: Manifestos are often slim […]
- [Guest election blog - Labour by Alick Simmons](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-labour-by-alick-simmons/): Alick Simmons is a retired veterinarian. He served as the UK Government’s Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer (2007-2015) and the UK Food Standards Agency’s Veterinary Director (2004-2007).  In his private life, Alick is a passionate amateur naturalist and after leaving public service in 2015 he set out to combine his interest in wildlife with his professional experience. Alick is chair of the Zoological Society of London’s Ethics Committee on Animal Research and a member of the Wild Animal Welfare Committee.  He sits as an independent member of both the RSPB’s Ethics Advisory Committee and the National Trust’s Wildlife Management Advisory Group.  […]
- [Guest election blog - Plaid Cymru by Henry Morris](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-plaid-cymru-by-henry-morris/): I am an ultra-marathon runner and a comedy writer. I first voted in 2011. That was in Harrogate, when my vote went to Phil Willis of the Liberal Democrats. I continued to vote Lib Dem until the coalition and have since voted Labour or Green.  I now live in the constituency of Caerfyrddin in West Wales where there’s a three-horse race between Plaid Cymru, Labour and the Conservatives. Here are my thoughts about the environmental implications of Plaid Cymru’s election manifesto. Things I like: Things I don’t like: Overall assessment: I admire much of this manifesto and having already written […]
- [Guest election blog – Scottish National Party by Ian Carter](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-scottish-national-party-by-ian-carter/): . I worked as an ornithologist at Natural England for 25 years, and was closely involved in the reintroduction of Red Kites and other species recovery projects. I now spend my time watching wildlife and writing about it. My recent books include Rhythms of Nature, and I co-authored The Red Kite’s Year and The Hen Harrier’s Year with wildlife artist Dan Powell. I moved to Galloway, southern Scotland (from Devon) just over two years ago and have written a new book, Wild Galloway, about the glen where I now live, to be published by Whittles in September. In England, I […]
- [Guest election blog - Scottish National Party by Mark Avery](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-scottish-national-party-by-mark-avery/): . I am one of the co-founders and co-directors of Wild Justice but I write this in a personal capacity. I am a scientist (evolutionary biologist and ecologist) by training, and I worked for the RSPB for 25 years. Since 2011 I have done pieces of freelance work for several wildlife organisations, written several books, blogged, campaigned and helped set up Wild Justice. I first voted in the 1979 general election and have rarely voted for a successful candidate. I am a member of the Labour Party and have, in the past, voted Labour (often), LibDem (rarely but where they […]
- [Restore Nature Now - your photos](https://tempo.samkilday.com/restore-nature-now-your-photos/): On Saturday 22nd June, tens of thousands of you took to the streets for nature and for the climate. Here are some of your photos from the Restore Nature Now march, it was brilliant to see so many of you there. If you went along and took any photos, send them to admin@tempo.samkilday.com and we’ll share some of them here!
- [Guest election blog - Plaid Cymru by John Bratton](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-plaid-cymru-by-john-bratton/): I am an entomologist who held desk jobs in the government conservation agencies in Peterborough and Bangor for 20 years. Most of my time now goes on helping to look after an SSSI in Gwynedd. I have voted in all available elections since 1979, never with whole-hearted support for a party but rather trying to choose the one whose policies would be least damaging to the natural environment. I have only once voted for the winning party in a general election. These are my thoughts on the environmental aspects of the 2024 Plaid Cymru manifesto. The manifesto has 15 chapters. […]
- [Guest Election Blog - Scottish Greens by Lucy Lapwing Hodson](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-scottish-greens-by-lucy-lapwing-hodson/): Scottish Green Party Manifesto – by Lucy Lapwing I am an environmental campaigner, writer, amateur-ish naturalist and enthusiastic toad-tickler. I worked in the conservation sector for eight years, and now work with Wild Justice on their campaigns. I also write about wildlife, organise other campaigns and events, and work a bit in wildlife telly. I first voted in the 2010 general election, and awoke on May 7th to a Conservative government just a month after my nineteenth birthday, which was excellent… I joined the Labour Party aged 16, and have voted Labour in every general election since. I sat a term […]
- [Guest election blog - The Workers' Party by Mark Avery](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-the-workers-party-by-mark-avery/): I am one of the co-founders and co-directors of Wild Justice but I write this in a personal capacity. I am a scientist (evolutionary biologist and ecologist) by training, and I worked for the RSPB for 25 years. Since 2011 I have done pieces of freelance work for several wildlife organisations, written several books, blogged, campaigned and helped set up Wild Justice. I first voted in the 1979 general election and have rarely voted for a successful candidate. I am a member of the Labour Party and have, in the past, voted Labour (often), LibDem (rarely but where they stood […]
- [Guest election blog - Labour by Derek Gow](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-labour-by-derek-gow/): I am a wildlife ecologist who has worked on reintroduction projects for species such as the water vole, Eurasian beaver and the white stork. I have written three books, the last of which – The Hunt for The Shadow Wolf – was published by Chelsea Green in March 2024.  As this is my second review, I am confident that I have no need to repeat a prescribed layout. Mark, Chris and Ruth will be clement and allow me some space for modest scene setting.    Imagine, if you can, a family bereavement. It’s a distant relative, not someone you adore and […]
- [Guest election blog - Lib Dems by Chantal Woodun](https://tempo.samkilday.com/monday-guest-election-blog-lib-dems-by-chantal-woodun/): My interest in the natural world led me to study Zoology and Psychology as a first degree, followed by International Studies, focusing on the environment and environmental policy. I became a London National Park City Ranger in 2020. Combined with the @wanderfulldn Instagram account, I attempt to draw people’s attention to the diverse habitats and wildlife found across our capital and beyond and how this can benefit our physical and mental health. I also work with the campaign to save the glorious Warren Farm Nature Reserve, in West London. Campaigners and citizens have struggled to protect this rare, 61 acre […]
- [Guest election blog - Labour by Sophie Pavelle](https://tempo.samkilday.com/monday-guest-election-blog-labour-by-sophie-pavelle/): I’m a Devon-based author (Forget Me Not, Bloomsbury 2022) and science communicator. I have worked in the NGO conservation sector since leaving university, most recently for Beaver Trust. I’m an Ambassador for The Wildlife Trusts and sit on the RSPB England Advisory Committee. My writing appears in The Guardian, National Geographic Traveller, New Scientist, The Independent, and BBC magazines. Having been born in the USA I have dual citizenship between the States and the UK, first voting in the 2013 US election, and later in the 2015 UK general election. I’ve often felt torn between viewing voting as both a […]
- [Guest election blog - Reform by Henry Morris](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-reform-by-henry-morris/): I first voted in 2001. That was in Harrogate, when my vote went to Phil Willis of the Liberal Democrats. I once delivered some leaflets for him; I have a vivid memory of an ‘Up Yours Delors’ UKIP sticker in someone’s window and thinking they must be mad. It didn’t occur to me that 20 years later their talisman Nigel Farage would be shaping UK political discourse. I continued to vote Lib Dem until the coalition and have since voted Labour or Green. Since I now live in Wales, I’m fortunate to have an alternative to Labour: this time I […]
- [Guest election blog - Lib Dems by Stephen Moss](https://tempo.samkilday.com/guest-election-blog-lib-dems-by-stephen-moss/): I am an author, naturalist, university lecturer and former wildlife TV producer, originally from London but now living in Somerset. I have produced numerous TV programmes and written many books about the natural world and environmental issues, and feel passionately about the need to take urgent action to reverse global biodiversity loss and the climate crisis. I first voted in the 1979 general election (when to my eternal shame, as a very politically naïve 19-year-old, I voted Conservative). Since then I have generally voted Liberal, but when I lived in North London in the late 1980s and early 1990s, I […]

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- [Donations](https://tempo.samkilday.com/wildlife-donations/): Donations from individuals are our sole source of income – your donation will enable us to fight for wildlife in the courts and in the media
- [About Wild Justice](https://tempo.samkilday.com/about/): Why Wild Justice exists… Wild Justice takes legal cases and advocates for a better deal for UK wildlife. Species can’t take legal cases in their own names, they can’t write to MPs and they can’t sign petitions, but, together, we can stand up for wildlife using the legal system and seeking changes to existing laws. What Wild Justice is… Wild Justice is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee. A not-for-profit company is one where the directors don’t benefit from the profits of the company and money raised is spent on the aims (called the ‘objects’) of the company. The objects […]
- [Privacy Policy](https://tempo.samkilday.com/privacy-policy/): Privacy Who we are Wild Justice is a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee. The three directors and founders are Dr Mark Avery, Chris Packham and Dr Ruth Tingay. Our website address is: https://www.obiwebdevelopment.co.uk/wildjustice. What personal data we collect and why we collect them Comments We don’t currently allow comments on this site – so we don’t need to worry about this. Contact forms If you subscribe to our newsletter than we will keep your name and email address. We will only use this information to send you the Wild Justice newsletter (and only if you have subscribed to it). We will […]


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