The Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024 (the “Act”) was passed by the Scottish Parliament on 21 March 2024, receiving Royal Assent on 30 April 2024.
We previously wrote about the Bill, which preceded the Act, here. Not all sections of the Act are in force yet.
Summary
The Act introduces a number of key changes to the law:
A licensing scheme for the killing or taking certain birds, initially red grouse.
A licensing scheme for the use of specific traps, which will require people to complete an approved training course.
A prohibition on using snares.
A licensing scheme for muirburn.
Extended powers for Scottish SPCA inspectors to investigate wildlife crime.
We will now look at the Act in more detail.
Part 1 of the Act: Wildlife management
The first part of the Act makes changes to the rules surrounding how certain wild animals and birds can be captured and killed. In summary, the Act:
Makes it an offence to use a glue trap for the purpose of killing or taking any animal, or to use glue traps in a manner that is likely to cause bodily injury to any animal. Further, unless you are an authorised person, it is an offence to supply (or offer to supply) or possess a glue trap. Liability for conviction may result in fines of up to £40,000 and/ or potentially up to five years imprisonment.
Introduces a licensing scheme for the use of specific traps to catch wild birds and animals.
Introduces a licensing scheme for killing certain birds, initially red grouse, which require the owner or occupier of the land to have a licence (granted by NatureScot) to allow hunting on their land (known as a Section 16AA Licence). An occupier of the land is someone who has shooting rights on the land, for example a sporting tenant. This licensing scheme went live on 12 August 2024. NatureScot has responsibility for monitoring compliance with the Section 16AA Licenses.
Obliges the Scottish Ministers to prepare a code of practice for managing the land to which the Section 16AA licence relates. The Code of Practice for Grouse Moor Management (the “Grouse Code") has now been published by the Scottish Ministers. Those who are granted a Section 16AA Licence must comply with the Grouse Code, which makes provisions as to how land should be managed to reduce harm to any wild animal, bird, or plant; how the taking or killing of wild birds should be carried out; and how predators should be controlled.
Provides for potential new powers to inspectors to gather evidence around certain wildlife crime offences.
Part 2 of the Act: Muirburn
The second part of the Act changes the regulation of muirburn, which is the burning of heather or other plants to manage the natural environment; encourage new growth; maintain landscapes and habitats; and reduce the risk of wildfires. The Act introduces a licensing regime but it is not expected that this part of the Act will come into force until the 2025 muirburn season (15 September 2025).
An owner or occupier of land may apply for a licence permitting muirburn for various purposes set out in the Act, depending on whether the application relates to peatland or not. These include:
managing the habitats of moorland fame or wildlife;
improving the grazing potential of moorland for livestock;
conserving or managing the natural environment; and
preventing the risk of wildfires.
A full list of such purposes, which also distinguishes between whether the application relates to peatland or not, can be found in Section 13 of the Act.
Applications must be made to the Scottish Ministers as required. The Scottish Ministers will grant the muirburn licence depending on certain conditions being met, as set out in S14 of the Act, with the content and conditions of the licence being set out in Section 15 of the Act.
Interestingly, a person making muirburn must also complete a Scottish Minister approved training course in advance. The Scottish Ministers are yet to prepare a code in relation to how to make muirburn safely and appropriately, so more information will follow in this regard.
Comment
The Section 16AA licences have been the source of much debate and it will be interesting to see how NatureScot approach the monitoring and compliance of these, and how the muirburn provisions are dealt with when these come into force. For more information about any element of the Act, please contact a member of our rural team.