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Buzzardgate: Benyon performs U-turn on plan to control birds





The Department for Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) performed the swift U-turn after it was roundly criticised for plans to capture or destroy nests of the birds of prey found to be disturbing young pheasants.
Mr Benyon found himself uncomfortably pulled into the spat and accused of having a conflict of interests with his background as a pro-hunting landowner.
Defra said yesterday (Wednesday) there was no truth to the clash of interest claims and the decision to drop the plans was down to public pressure and a campaign by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB).
“In the light of the public concerns expressed in recent days, I have decided to look at developing new research proposals on buzzards,” he said.
“At the same time it is right that we make decisions on the basis of sound evidence and we do need to understand better the whole relationship between raptors, game birds and other livestock. I will collaborate with all the organisations that have an interest in this issue and will bring forward new proposals.”
The RSPB’s conservation director Martin Harper said the charity was pleased that Mr Benyon had listened to the concerns and acted in the public interest.
“The recovery of the buzzard is being celebrated by the public after many decades of persecution. It is clear they don’t want their taxes being spent on removing buzzards and the Government has to ensure that no bird of prey will be killed in the name of sport.
“We don’t want anything to distract Defra from the pressing task of saving our threatened wildlife. It should be putting its limited resources into areas such as preventing the extinction of hen harriers in England.
The RSPB had accused Defra of buckling to pheasant shooting industry lobbysists and said the £370,000 study was waste of taxpayers money.
Outcry followed in national newspapers, and the environmental journalist George Monbiot, who has taken frequent pot-shots at Mr Benyon since the Newbury MP took up the role of environment minister, again swiped at his background and links to agriculture.
Last week Mr Monbiot, along with the 17 signatures on a petition, called for Mr Benyon to stand down in the wake of “Buzzardgate”.
Mr Benyon shrugged off the claims of a conflict of interests and said the environmental activist was “consistently ill-informed”.
He dismissed accusations the project was a waste of money and added that he was very proud of what the department had achieved in the last two years having showed a commitment to conservation.
Criticism also followed from Birdwatch.co.uk, which put together a protest letter, the Northern England Raptor Forum, which called it “ a scandalous waste of public money”, and the Hawk and Owl Trust Conservation Officer for the Eastern
Region, which said it was totally against any persecution of any birds of prey.



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