Falconer praises MSPs after ‘flawed’ legislation overturned

A falconer said “quality of life” has returned to the birds in his care after “flawed” falconry legislation was overturned by MSPs.

Barry Blyther, who runs Elite Falconry in Kirkcaldy, Fife, petitioned the Scottish Parliament to retain the rights of falconers to practice upland falconry.

The specialised form of hunting using trained birds of prey to catch wild game, such as mountain hares, in high-altitude open landscapes had been banned by new protections brought in by the Animals and Wildlife Act 2020.

The new protections meant falconers would face prosecution if their birds were to hunt wild game.

Giving evidence to the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee previously, Mr Blythe said: “The heritage art of falconry has been practiced around the world for at least 4,000 years and is recognised by Unesco as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

“The purpose of the legislation was to prevent mass culls of tens of thousands of hares in Scotland each year on organised shoots.

“The legislation was flawed. Falconry was snagged as an unintended by-catch. From the conservation, animal welfare and democratic angles, it was a travesty.

“It was unfair and unjustifiable that a piece of legislation brought into law to address a totally different issue had the side effect of making the sustainable and legitimate branch of falconry illegal.”

The petition, which was first lodged in 2021 as part of a wider campaign led by Mr Blyther, attracted more than 9,000 signatures.

The Natural Environment Bill has now been amended, allowing falconers to apply for a specific licence to take mountain hares for the purposes of falconry.

Scottish Conservative MSP Jackson Carlaw, convener of the Public Petitions Committee, said: “We commend Mr Blyther for the persistence with which he has brought attention to this issue.

“We are delighted that the work of the committee and the petitioner has led to a legislative change that addresses the issue that was at the heart of the petition. Let Stanley (Mr Blyther’s golden eagle) fly!”

Writing to the committee following the legislation being overturned, Mr Blyther said: “I would like to directly acknowledge the work of the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee, most of all on behalf of my magnificent birds of prey to whom you have allowed me to return a quality of life and a meaning for existence to.

“You gave David a slingshot, you showed him how to use it, and where Goliath got it wrong, the committee gave me a good eye and aim, and we got them to put it right.”