Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill Submission

Department for Social Development

Mr Sean McCann 
Assistant Clerk to the Committee for the Environment 
Northern Ireland Assembly 
Room 247 
Parliament Buildings 
BELFAST
BT4 3XX

2 February 2010

Dear Mr McCann

Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill

Thank you for your letter of 12 January 2010 inviting the Department’s views on the proposed Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill and in particular on Clause 1 and Clause 31. The Social Development Committee considered your letter at its meeting on 14 January and agreed that a response should be provided by the Department.

Clause 1 - Biodiversity

The Department or its agencies have no direct responsibility for the conservation of biodiversity and therefore have no comment on Clause 1.

Clause 31 -Abolition of game licences and game dealers’ licences

Game laws in Northern Ireland are the responsibility of the Department of the Environment. However, for historic reasons the Department for Social Development administers the game and game dealers’ licensing systems, a discrete aspect of the overall game laws, under the Miscellaneous Transferred Excise Duties Act 1972.

Game and game dealer licensing dates back to the 19th Century. It is thought that the requirement for a person to hold a game licence to hunt game was introduced to restrict poaching, to encourage compliance with close seasons for conservation purposes and to restrict the availability of game to those who were able to pay a significant amount for a licence. Similarly, the requirement that people have a licence before they can sell game is likely to have been intended to help restrict the sale of poached game. There may also have been a hygiene issue in that game must be sold within 10 days of the end of the shooting season.

The game licensing system in England and Wales was abolished in August 2007 following a review by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) which concluded that the game licensing system no longer served any useful purpose. It was also felt that, given today’s comprehensive food standards legislation covering hygiene aspects of game, there is no longer any justification for requiring retailers to hold a game dealers licence.

From a local perspective, the Minister for Social Development concluded that the same policy considerations applied and that it would be sensible to adopt the measures that had been introduced in England and Wales. The DOE review of the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985 offered an appropriate opportunity to consult and a proposal to abolish the system was included in the public consultation document issued by DOE in February 2008.

Responses to the consultation showed wide support for the proposal to abolish the current requirements for anyone who hunts game or deals in game to have a licence. Following consideration of the results of the consultation exercise, Minister Ritchie concluded that it would be in order to make legislative provision to abolish the game licensing system and for the planned Wildlife and Natural Environment Bill to be used as the legislative vehicle. The views of the Social Development Committee (SDC) were also sought and, following briefing by DSD officials in May 2009, the SDC unanimously agreed to Minister Ritchie’s proposal to abolish the game licensing system and to the proposed legislative vehicle.

Therefore, the Department welcomes the inclusion of Clause 31 which provides for the revocation of the game and game dealers’ licensing systems and replicates measures introduced in England and Wales from August 2007.

Yours sincerely

Patricia K McAlister
Head of Social Policy Unit - Licensing

cc Clerk to the Social Development Committee