Killing of several bird species in Northern Ireland is unlawful as of 10th Sept. 2021.
Wild Justice has challenged the legality of the General Licence in Northern Ireland, and instead or rewriting the licence, it has been allowed to slip.
Wild Justice reports:
“From tomorrow, Northern Ireland’s House Sparrows, Starlings, Magpies, Jackdaws, Woodpigeons and some other species will have a level of legal protection which they have not enjoyed in the past because DAERA have not issued a valid licence for their killing. We’re sure that DAERA will seek to introduce new general licences at some stage, and we generally welcomed their proposals in the withdrawn consultation, but they haven’t done so yet. We’ll be watching for any action today. But let us be clear, in the absence of general licences, those species listed under those expiring licences are fully protected by law and anyone killing them would open themselves up to prosecution.”