Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Answers of 16 November 2023 to Question 1065 and 23 October 2023 to Question 202935 on Game: Birds, for what reasons the 37 licences were approved against the recommendations of Natural England.
In reaching the decisions in question, the Secretary of State obtained advice from experts in DEFRA and other relevant bodies. In certain cases, it received site-specific information about highly relevant factors including species abundance, roost and pen locations, and release site locations. Ultimately, the relevant decision makers were satisfied – taking into account the totality of advice they received - that there were cogent reasons justifying a departure from Natural England’s advice.