THE recent mysterious disappearance of a tagged hen harrier on a Teesdale grouse moor Echo, Mar 2) is not proof that this bird was illegally shot.
Nevertheless, this tragic loss is a reminder that evidence from studies over many years points to the fact that the grouse shooting industry in this country is complicit in the persecution of hen harriers and other protected birds of prey.
For decades government agencies and conservation bodies have been in dialogue with the powerful grouse-shooting lobby in an attempt to find a solution that will stop this illegal slaughter.
The grouse-shooting organisations have shown astonishing intransigence and arrogance over the issue.
They have demonstrated an unwillingness to put their own house in order and instead attempt to divert blame to a few bad apples when the evidence incontrovertibly indicates otherwise.
It is now abundantly clear that self-regulation of this industry is never going to work. The RSPB has called for the statutory regulation of driven grouse-shooting but given the industry’s track record it is difficult to see this being effective. Perhaps the time has come to call for an outright ban.
Michael Powell, Stanhope
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