IT’S A REAL DAISY STORY FROM PLANTLIFE

It's time to celebrate the Daisy! View this email in your browser Donate Member Shop Hi John, Did you know that today is National Daisy Day? The Daisy definitely deserves its own day. It's underrated and often overlooked, but this small unassuming wildflower has an impressive history, fabulous folklore and is an unsung hero of the wildlife world. Join us on a journey to discover the Daisy. Discover the Daisy From January until December, the Daisy can be spotted popping out of lawns and other short grassland from road verges to meadows. It can be found in almost all temperate regions of the world, although is only native to temperate Europe. But did you know that the delicate Daisy isn't just one flower? It's actually over 100 flowers! Each of the ray florets (which appear as white petals) is an individual flower, and the disc florets (which appear as the yellow centre) are hundreds more tiny flowers Here are just a few more of our favourite flower facts for the Daisy: Bee Daisies are a wildlife wonder and great for pollinators, but also provide a food source for caterpillars, larvae and rabbits Flower The Daisy was used medicinally by people in ancient Egypt, as well as Roman soldiers Sun with rays The name Daisy comes from ‘day’s eye’, due to its tendency to open when the sun rises and close when it sets High voltageIn Austria and Germany, people used to hang Oxeye Daisies inside to repel lightning Megaphone These pretty wildflowers have also become part of our language. People often say ‘fresh as a daisy’ or that something is ‘coming up daisies’ Find out more about the delightful Daisy The Daisy is so much more than meets the eye! This wonderful wildflower also has an incredible history that links with our own dating back thousands of years! Its delicate blooms have been featured in folklore from the Celts to the Norse Gods. Head to our blog to find out more. Why not see if you can spot the first Daisies of the year - share your photos by tagging us on social media. Thank you. Charley Plantlife Nature Editor Follow Plantlife on: Instagram Instagram Facebook Facebook Twitter Twitter YouTube YouTube LinkedIn LinkedIn Website Website Copyright © Plantlife All rights reserved. Plantlife International is a charitable company limited by guarantee. Registered Charity in England and Wales (1059559) & Scotland, (SC038951) Registered Company in England and Wales (3166339) Registered Office: Brewery House,36 Milford Street, Salisbury, Wiltshire, SP1 2AP, UK Tel: +44 (0) 1722 342730 enquiries@plantlife.org.uk www.plantlife.org.uk Plantlife respects your privacy. You can read more about how and why we use your personal data at www.plantlife.org.uk/privacy-notice Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

INFORMATION FROM PLANTLIFE

View this email in your browser Plantlife logo - The global voice for wild plants and fungi Dear John, Do you want to have a greater impact on the world, be more connected to nature, or finally name that plant you’ve walked past every day? Well, we’re here to help. Did you know we regularly host FREE online events for Plantlife members? Join today to unlock access to our inspiring programme. You’ll learn from Plantlife experts about the impact you are having, learn more about wild plants and fungi, and take away practical tips. Plus, you’ll get exclusive access to the member talk archive with hours of extra content covering topics including gardening, road verges, temperate rainforests and fungi. Unlock access Talks coming up… In February, learn about how important individual plants species are and the fascinating relationships between plants and other wildlife. In March, peak behind-the-scenes at the incredible impact the National Lottery has had on nature restoration and our exciting new projects. In April, join historian Dr Tabitha Stanmore to uncover the deep-rooted traditions, plant knowledge and how everyday magic shaped the lives of the people who lived in the Fens in the 1600s. Join today to gain access to talks What do current members think? “Absolutely super, first class. Enthusiastic, knowledgeable presenters, good communicators and excellent graphics.” “One of the very best talks I've heard on ecological and suchlike topics, truly inspiring.” “I always learn something with your talks. I like the mixture of science and creativity.” Membership Benefits Your Plantlife membership will also include a range of other fantastic benefits including: A beautifully illustrated ID Guide of wild plants, fungi, lichens and trees Plantlife magazine, delivered to you three times a year, packed full of inspiring content Practical tips on growing a meadow in your garden and gardening peat-free Family members will also receive a fun and educational Budding Botanist activity pack for every child with every magazine And most importantly, by becoming a member, you’re helping to protect the wild plants and fungi that are vital to all life on Earth. Make a difference to nature Best wishes Rebecca James Membership Team Carpet of snowdrops Follow Plantlife on: Instagram Instagram Facebook Facebook Twitter Twitter YouTube YouTube LinkedIn LinkedIn Website Website Copyright © Plantlife All rights reserved. Plantlife International is a charitable company limited by guarantee. Registered Charity in England and Wales (1059559) & Scotland, (SC038951) Registered Company in England and Wales (3166339) Registered Office: Brewery House,36 Milford Street, Salisbury, Wiltshire, SP1 2AP, UK Tel: +44 (0) 1722 342730 enquiries@plantlife.org.uk www.plantlife.org.uk Plantlife respects your privacy. You can read more about how and why we use your personal data at www.plantlife.org.uk/privacy-notice Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

PROTECT THE WILD SUPPLY VIDEO CAMS AND THIS IS WHAT CAN BE PROVED

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more South Norfolk Hunt Sabs video the Essex and Suffolk Hunt Using cameras provided by Protect the Wild JAN 27 READ IN APP Two years ago we launched “The Protect the Wild Equipment Fund’, aiming to provide equipment to individuals or groups who are working as ‘eyes in the field’ to tackle wildlife crime and protect wildlife. Our first purchase was radios for the excellent Cheshire Borderland Monitors, who wrote in a blog for us that the radios would enable them to stay in touch with each other on the ground, monitoring hunts, and ultimately protecting the wild. Since then we have sent thousands of pounds worth of equipment to many groups. Everything from radios and camcorders to bodycams and drones. One of the groups we have supported is the South Norfolk Hunt Saboteurs who “help wildlife escape those trying to hurt and kill them in south Norfolk and beyond.” They regularly sab the Essex and Suffolk Hunt across ‘Buckleshire’ (mockingly named for the local Buckle family who run the Hunt). Towards the end of 2025 the South Norfolk Hunt Sabs asked if we would upgrade their bodycams to enable them to catch the Hunt breaking the law yet again. We were very happy to do so, and the sabs have sent us the following report: Essex and Suffolk Hunt. Image South Norfolk Hunt Saboteurs Following Protect the Wild’s generous sharing of our story about Zed Security attacking us during a meet of the Essex and Suffolk Hunt, it followed up with an offer through its Equipment Fund. We’re a pretty small group and mostly self-funded, so we don’t have too much in the way of equipment needs. However, we’d recently run into an issue where our group-owned body cameras were too poor quality for our purposes. As a result, we asked for a couple of new ones from Protect the Wild – specifically DJI Osmo Action 1s, which though old still provide great quality footage at a relatively low cost. We received them and used them the following Saturday. It was a good thing we did. On their first outing, one of the cameras captured very clear footage of hounds from the Essex and Suffolk Hunt chasing a fox through Semer Wood. The meet was held at Dairy Farm, owned by the hunt’s former master and ubiquitous Suffolk personality James Buckle, on 29th November 2025. Semer Wood is part of Buckle’s property and a frequent hunting ground for the Essex and Suffolk Hunt. Two of our sabs were in the right place at the right time to see and film outgoing huntsman John Henty allow the pack to chase a fox to ground in Semer Wood. We then stopped the hounds from marking to ground for too long, forcing Henty to eventually call the pack away. This footage would absolutely not have been captured had we not received those new bodycams. Our old ones would have been too blurry and low-res to effectively display what we were seeing with our eyes. The Osmo Action, on the other hand, provides insight into yet another example – as though any more were really needed – of a hunt chasing a fox as though the practice were never banned. Thank you to Protect the Wild and all its supporters for helping us capture this moment and continue helping the nationwide-exposé of this vile (not to mention criminal) activity. For the full report - Report #88: Essex and Suffolk Hunt @ Dairy Farm, Semer, 29/11/25 - please read South Norfolk Hunt Saboteurs Substack. Image South Norfolk Hunt Saboteurs We are proud that we’ve been able to help the South Norfolk Hunt Saboteurs through our Equipment Fund. We are proud - but also hugely grateful to our supporters. Because it is YOU that enable us to help these brave folk. Your contributions go directly into protecting wildlife by supporting activists in the field in multiple ways. It not only pays for the equipment that keep eyes on hunts and other wildlife abusers, it funds undercover operations that expose cruelty hidden from the public, AND it ensures frontline activists have access to free mental health support so they can keep going in what is often a relentless and emotionally draining fight (please see ‘Over a hundred mental health sessions given to animal rights activists!’). Every single pound is ring fenced and used for this work alone. It fuels the people and the tools that make a real difference for foxes, badgers, birds and all the other wildlife targeted by abusers. If you want to be part of this fight, please chip in a few pounds each month. Together we can give activists the strength, the resources and the support they need to protect wildlife and hold these cowards to account. Become a monthly supporter If you’re an individual or organisation working in the field and would like our support, please get in touch. We’d love to hear from you. SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM MARINE CONSERVATION — LOOKING AFTER WONDERFUL THINGS UNDER OUR WATER

Find out the impact we had last year View in browser A pod of dolphins breaching the sea's surface. Text overlay 'Annual impact round-up. Big wins for the ocean in 2025.' Credit: Getty Images Hi John, Last year, with you, our passionate community, we once again helped protect, regenerate and restore our ocean. Together, we were able to achieve great things in 2025. So, I want to share some of these great moments with you. Read on for a few key highlights, and if you'd like all the details, I've popped in a link for you to read our full Annual Impact Report. Highlights in numbers Conservation Native oysters being held by someone in orange safety gloves. Text overlay '61,800 native oysters were deployed through restoration projects' Credit: Maverick Photo Agency We continue to make huge strides in native oyster restoration with our successful projects in Scotland and around the UK. From the 61,800 oysters we restored last year, an estimated 12 million litres of water will be filtered every single day. Through the full duration of the collaborative Dornoch Environmental Enhancement Project, we released the 100,000th oyster to the Dornoch Firth. Advocacy and Education Three people kneeling and looking into a rockpool on a sunny day with blue skies. Text overlay 'We engaged with over 21,280 people at schools and in our communities' Credit: Billy ​Barraclough We delivered 600 community engagement sessions to over 270 schools and community groups. This means 21,280 people have a better understanding of, and a stronger connection to, our shared ocean. 17,500 young people attended in-person or online events to learn how to protect the seas. Volunteering and Citizen Science Large white jellyfish with long stingers flowing in blue sea water. Text overlay '2,400 species monitoring surveys were submitted by citizen scientists' Credit: Peter ​Bardsley Data collected by you, our members, volunteers and citizen scientists is vital evidence we need to back up our advocacy work and policy asks, as well as helping us understand the state of our environment. In total, 2,400 species surveys and 1,250 litter surveys were submitted last year. Nearly 4,000 new volunteers joined our fantastic community of Sea Champions. Almost 2,000 company volunteers hit the beach to help clean up our coastlines. Ocean Action and Advocacy Group of people on a sandy beach with litter pickers and green rubbish bags, and someone bent over lifting a tire. Text overlay '16,000kg of litter was removed from our beaches by volunteers' Credit: Marine Conservation Society, Liz ​Bassindale The dedication and over 17,100 hours of hard work from our volunteers cleaned 16,700kg of litter from our shores. Through the 4,000 mentions across broadcast and online media, we raised the profile of our ocean, the challenges it's facing, and what we need to do to protect it. Our evidence and advocacy were included in 20 mentions across debates, ministerial statements, parliamentary questions and motions. An increase of almost double in 2024. Thank you From everyone here at the Marine Conservation Society, thank you. Your support makes a colossal impact all year round. If you'd like to dive into the details, you can read our annual impact report: Dive into more of our 2025 impacts If anything you've read about in this email has inspired you to get more involved, find out other ways you can support the seas and our work on our website. Let's see what amazing things we can achieve together this year. Lewi Jinks Marketing Officer Marine Conservation Society Donate Contact us Unsubscribe The Marine Conservation Society is the UK charity dedicated to protecting our seas, shores and wildlife. Marine Conservation Society | Company Limited by Guarantee (England and Wales) No. 2550966 Registered Charity No. England and Wales No. 1004005 | Scotland No. SC037480 VAT No. 321 4912 32 Registered Office: Overross House, Ross Park, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, HR9 7US. Scottish Office: CBC House, 24 Canning Street, Edinburgh, EH3 8EG.

FROM PROTECT THE WILD — MORE DITHERING BY THOSE INPOWER ON THE HUNTERS

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Few convictions means no illegal hunting? Ten cases that illustrate why that's not true. Pro-hunt lobbyists wrong again. TOM ANDERSON JAN 25 ∙ GUEST POST READ IN APP Since the publication of Labour’s animal welfare strategy just before Christmas, there has been ever more desperate pushback from pro-hunt lobbyists like the British Hound Sports Association, the Countryside Alliance and pro-hunt MPs in the UK parliament (overwhelmingly from the ranks of the Conservatives and the far-right Reform UK). The 07 January parliamentary debate on rural communities was replete with tired old tropes about how the architects of the new ban don’t understand ‘country life’ and that ‘rural communities’ are firmly in support of fox hunting (to read why that’s a lot of old claptrap click here). But another pro-hunt argument was wheeled out as well. Tory MP Stuart Anderson argued that because there have only been a supposed 44 convictions since the Hunting Act was passed in 2004, it follows that hunters must all be law-abiding souls just trying to go out and lawfully trail hunt. In fact, there have been at least 59 convictions covering 78 charges of illegal hunting under Section 1 of the Hunting Act. Protect the Wild knows of another eight cases that have yet to be heard in court. It’s important to state clearly that those 59 successful cases only made it into court because of the huge efforts of UK wildlife defenders who meticulously gathered evidence of wildlife crime and handed it to the police. Why evidence often doesn’t lead to convictions Just because there is evidence that illegal hunting has taken place doesn’t guarantee a conviction under the current political and legislative regime. Here are a few reasons why Hunting Act cases often end in failure: To start with, wildlife crimes are not notifiable, they are usually treated as minor, and prosecutions for illegal hunting are “summary only” offences usually heard in magistrates’ courts, meaning that typically fewer resources are allocated. Protect the Wild and many other organisations have argued for years that wildlife crimes MUST be taken more seriously. Cases never make it to court in the first place because of a lack of will by the Police and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), or get thrown out because of mistakes made by the CPS and police. This is a consequence of the low priority given to prosecuting Hunting Act offences. Police bias in favour of hunts is undoubtedly a big factor. Members of hunt groups are typically from a massively privileged section of society which the police are used to showing deference and respect. They often exert undue influence on police forces. This has been well documented in the case of the Warwickshire Hunt by West Midlands Hunt Saboteurs. The CPS regularly deems that the evidence (video, eye witness accounts etc) is insufficient. We all benefit from a presumption of ‘innocent until proven guilty’, but wildlife defenders are repeatedly held to an impossibly high standard of evidence before the CPS will take potential wildlife crime prosecutions forward. Crucially, the CPS needs to prove that hunters intended to breach the Hunting Act, an obstacle which could be overcome by including a crime of ‘recklessly allowing a creature to be hunted with hounds’ into the new legislation. Hunts regularly use the smokescreen that they were lawfully trail hunting to avoid conviction. The CPS have to prove beyond reasonable doubt that they weren’t following a trail. Hunts argue that any mammals killed are a result of them accidentally crossing the path of the pack of hounds while the dogs are innocently following a trail. Labour’s proposal to ban trail hunting would do away with this straw-man argument once and for all. Hunters are often acquitted on the basis that they were not in control of the hounds when a chase takes place. Again, this could be dealt with by adding a ‘recklessness’ clause into new legislation. Exemptions written into the Hunting Act are exploited by hunts every day. Hunts - in particular stag hunts - utilise an exemption in the Hunting Act which allows hunting with a maximum of two dogs for the purpose of supposed ‘research’ or ‘observation’. No research has ever been submitted and peer-reviewed, and in reality two dogs are used in relay, being replaced by two more from the pack when the first two get tired. Flushing to guns is another key exemption in the Hunting Act used by fox and stag hunts, though it is limited to flushing using just two dogs. Hunts typically argue that the dogs are only used to flush out their prey in order for them to be shot and killed. Lastly, Hunts often include violent and aggressive members. We know from numerous emails and discussions that witnesses (usually ordinary members of the public from the same villages and towns as the hunt staff and followers) feel intimidated at the prospect of giving evidence against them. Without witnesses, accounts become easier to throw out. The above aren’t persuasive on their own. What we need is proof. So here are ten case studies that illustrate just how difficult it is to convict under the Hunting Act. 1) Exmoor Foxhounds: The first ever Hunting Act case (2005) In 2005, just months after the Hunting Act came into force, Tony Wright of the Exmoor Foxhounds became the first ever person to be convicted after a private prosecution by the League Against Cruel Sports (LACS). LACS’ footage showed foxes being flushed out of their hiding places and the hounds giving chase, followed by a prolonged pursuit. One of the foxes was later shot, which is not prohibited under the Act. Wright said that the foxes were being flushed out purely for the purpose of shooting, but the judge didn’t believe him and said that Wright was instead leading a “traditional hunt”, in breach of the new Hunting Act. However, Wright appealed and eventually had his conviction overturned in 2007. His appeal hinged on the argument that the hounds were searching for an unspecified mammal for the purpose of flushing them out to be shot. Sadly, the High Court ruled in favour of Wright’s legal team and thus established an extremely damaging precedent that in order to be in breach of the Act hunts had to be using dogs to hunt a specified mammal (meaning the CPS need to prove not only that a hunt was intending to pursue a mammal with hounds but also that they had identified a particular creature to be hunted). The High Court also gave the view that it was down to the CPS to prove that defendants weren’t using one of the many exemptions in the Hunting Act. 2) Vale of White Horse Hunt (2022) Fox running in footage from a case against the Vale of White Horse Hunt A fox runs from the Vale of White Horse Hunt. Screenshot via HIT On January 5th 2022 Protect The Wild supported the Hunt Investigation Team (HIT) with their exposé of the Vale of White Horse (VWH) Hunt which saw the group deliberately and intentionally hunt a fox. In video footage, VWH member and land-owner Verity Drewett can be seen shouting and identifying the fox to the hunt so that she can be hunted. She even ensures the fox is unable to seek safety in a barn and states how she ‘turned him’ before describing the whereabouts of the animal to Duncan Drewett, senior member of the VWH Hunt. The terriermen responsible for bolting the fox from the barn on 5 January were also filmed doing the same thing at a meet on December 8th 2021. A fox was also seen at the back of the barn this day, and hours later a red coat was seen at the exact same spot as the fox. The site was filmed for a period of two days, and over this time not a single trail was seen being laid through the farm or anywhere around the farm. Even though the evidence was clear as day, when the case finally made it to court in 2023 a trail of errors by Wiltshire Police and the CPS led to the case being dismissed. Crucially, the CPS lawyer hadn’t got his act together to ensure that his witnesses would be available to attend court. 3) The Royal Artillery Hunt (2021) A fox runs from Charles Carter of the Royal Artillery Hunt. A fox runs from Charles Carter of the Royal Artillery Hunt, via Salisbury Plain Monitors Salisbury Plain Monitors captured footage on 30 October 2021 showing a fox running ahead of Charles Carter, huntsman of the Royal Artillery Hunt (RAH), as he made a call known as ‘doubling-down’ on his horn to encourage the hounds onto a fox’s scent. The fox then turns toward a covert of trees and, as the cameraperson runs to keep up, a hunt supporter can be heard shouting “hold up” into the covert. ‘Holding up’ refers to the practice of keeping foxes inside a covert to make it easier for hounds to catch and kill them. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) police charged Carter in May 2022. However, after two plea hearings in which Carter plead not guilty, the charge was dropped due to what Sergeant Clive Wooding told Salisbury Plain Monitors was a “legal technicality”. In fact, owing to a bank holiday weekend, the MOD Police had missed the file submission date agreed with Swindon Magistrates Court by just one day, a serious procedural error that can lead to severe consequences for a case, ranging from financial penalties to the case being dismissed entirely (”struck out”) - as happened here... 4) The Holderness Hunt (2019) A vixen is torn apart by the Holderness Hunt - Screenshot from video filmed by Hull Wildlife Protectors. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) dropped a seemingly cast-iron case against the Holderness Hunt last year. The Hunt had been caught red-handed on New Year’s Day 2019 allowing its hounds to chase and kill a vixen. Members of the Holderness were filmed flushing dense, impenetrable gorse. The hounds cried loudly and urgently, signifying that they had picked up a scent. Hunt staff, including then-Hunt Master and Huntsman Charles Clark, responded with horn calls, encouraging them on. The entire hunt and its supporters watched on as a vixen was flushed and ripped apart by the hounds. The footage from Hull Wildlife Protectors showed all of this perfectly clearly, but the CPS dropped the case anyway claiming the evidence was insufficient. 5) Devon and Somerset Staghounds (2024) followers enjoying the spectacle of terrified animals running for their lives, before the killing of the stag in Twitchen Devon - Photo courtesy of North Dorset Hunt Saboteurs Hunt supporters enjoyed the spectacle of terrified animals running for their lives, before the killing of the stag in Twitchen, Devon - Photo courtesy of North Dorset Hunt Saboteurs During a hunt at Twitchen in Devon, hunters separated a young stag from his pack. He was pursued by a pair of dogs, who were swapped out at times with others from a pack of hounds. When the desperate animal managed to reach the edge of the moorland and possible safety, the Hunt and their supporters lined up in vehicles to turn him around. Finally, after misjudging a leap of a fence, the hounds caught up with him. A member of the Staghounds shot the stag, and he was carved up. Ample video footage - including video of the kill itself - was provided to Avon & Somerset Police and Devon & Cornwall Constabulary by Wildlife Guardian and North Dorset Hunt Saboteurs. Police officers took statements and were also present during the hunt itself. However, neither force was willing to take the case to the CPS. The hunt likely used an exemption to the Hunting Act. The Act allows hunts to hunt with a maximum of two dogs ‘for the purpose of or in connection with the observation or study of the wild mammal.’ However, to the best of our knowledge no hunt has ever released any peer-reviewed research as a result of all their killing. Hounds are used in relay to get round the two dogs rule. To stop this from happening again, all exemptions in the Hunting Act must be removed. Specifically, “there should be no provision in the Act to employ any number of dogs to hunt wild mammals.” 6) Kimblewick Hunt (2020) Thames Valley Police refused to prosecute the Kimblewick Hunt despite being provided with footage of them chasing a fox and then feeding his body to the hounds in the moments after the kill. The killing took place on private land, and the landowner said that there was no attempt to call off the hounds. In fact, they were being egged on. Police interviewed huntsman Andrew Sallis, but decided not to pass the case to the CPS. The Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) reported that police officers told the landowner that “in relation to hunting offences we have to have evidence of the suspect having set out intending to hunt a fox that day, which even despite the CCTV evidence we do not have.” With other comparable offences, such as people arrested under public order legislation at protests or while out sabbing, arrestees would expect to have to take the stand and explain their intentions in court. This is often not so in the case of wildlife crime, and illustrates again how crimes against foxes and other non-human animals are treated as minor. The HSA also suspected police bias in favour of the hunt in this case. 7) Puckeridge Hunt (2021) Arun Squires, huntsman of the Puckeridge (now the Puckeridge with Essex Union) Hunt was acquitted in 2023 despite drone footage clearly showing him egging on hounds to kill a fox. Squires claimed he had laid a trail six hours earlier, and said that he thought he was encouraging the hounds along a trail. CPS lawyers quite reasonably argued that a trail could not remain in place for over six hours in heavy rain, but Squires said he believed it could. The District Judge trying the case said he suspected that Squires was illegally hunting, but that he had to be sure ‘beyond reasonable doubt’. North London Hunt Saboteurs, who captured the drone footage used in the case, wrote at the time: “We will be using what happened on the 27th December 2021, and yesterday at Stevenage Magistrates, to lobby the authorities. The footage we took on our drone, is invaluable, and we will be using it inexhaustibly to raise awareness of the farce of “trail hunting,” the requirement for a ban on “trail hunting,” and the introduction of a recklessness clause. No person of reasonable compunction could ever agree that the law should allow a person to get away with what our footage shows, and the Hunting Act, should be redesigned to properly prevent it.” Show Quoted Content “We will be using what happened on the 27th December 2021, and yesterday at Stevenage Magistrates, to lobby the authorities. The footage we took on our drone, is invaluable, and we will be using it inexhaustibly to raise awareness of the farce of “trail hunting,” the requirement for a ban on “trail hunting,” and the introduction of a recklessness clause. No person of reasonable compunction could ever agree that the law should allow a person to get away with what our footage shows, and the Hunting Act, should be redesigned to properly prevent it.” 8) Belvoir Hunt (2023) John Holliday John Holliday was acquitted despite horrific footage taken by Nottingham Hunt Saboteurs of the Belvoir Hunt chasing and killing a fox. John Holliday, huntsman of the Belvoir Hunt, stood trial in July 2023 for the killing of a fox near Leicester in 2022. Footage supplied to the CPS by Nottingham Hunt Saboteurs (NHS) was crystal clear. The hounds can be seen pursuing a fox as members of the Hunt watch unconcerned. No one from the Hunt tried to call the hounds off, either with their voices or with horns. The fox was savaged and eventually died in the arms of hunt saboteurs, who tried their best to save her. Surprise, surprise... Holliday argued that he thought the hounds were following a scent, and the court decided it couldn’t conclusively prove that he intended to hunt a mammal with hounds. According to Action Against Foxhunting (AAF), a call was made to call the hounds back after the fox had already been attacked. The intention of this final call may have been to establish plausible deniability. AAF emphasised that Holliday was a ‘veteran huntsman’ who should have controlled the hounds. They argued that “accidentally or recklessly killing a wild mammal with hounds should be an offence” and that hunts should “be able to produce proof that they have trained their hounds not to pursue wild mammals.” 9) Wynnstay Hunt (2022) The case against Chris Woodward of the Wynnstay Hunt collapsed at the eleventh hour. Cheshire Monitors had recorded damning video of illegal hunting, but the person who took the video didn’t attend court because of fear of repercussions from hunt members. Cheshire Monitors published footage showing hounds from the Wynnstay Hunt chasing a fox across an open field on 7 February 2022. In the video, Woodward rode closely behind the pack and took no action to stop the hounds chasing the fox. The incident occurred in Pickhill, near Wrexham, and was filmed by an independent member of the public. Fear of violence from hunts is very real. Hunt members and their employees and supporters have been convicted of violent attacks against wildlife defenders and have also attacked houses and property. Since the 2022 case, the Wynnstay’s use of violent rascist thugs to counter the efforts of sabs and monitors has been uncovered. In July 2023, a hunt supporter who was filmed performing a Nazi salute pleaded guilty to aggravated harassment. In July 2024, a Wynnstay Hunt security guard was convicted of racial abuse. 10) Dunston Harriers (2022) Geoffrey Block, Josh Worthington-Hayes and Lewis Ryland of the Dunston Harriers leave Great Yarmouth Magistrates' Court along with their lawyer Stephen Welford In 2023, three members of the Dunston Harriers were acquitted in Great Yarmouth. They had faced charges of illegally hunting after Norfolk and Suffolk Against Live Quarry Hunting recorded the Harriers’ hounds chasing a hare. The filmed chase took place in a field north of Lopham Grove in Fersfield, Norfolk. Geoffrey Block, Josh Worthing-Hayes and Lewis Ryland were eventually found not guilty on the grounds that Block was - according to the court’s finding - not in control of the hounds and the three defendants couldn’t run to stop the dogs (if they had wanted to, that is) because the field where the chase took place had been freshly drilled ready for planting. The three also claimed that a trail had earlier been laid. In summary, the case ended in acquittal because the CPS didn’t 100% prove their intention to illegally hunt. This problem of proving intention could be easily rectified by creating an offence of allowing the hunting of a mammal with dogs through recklessness. The above ten cases clearly show that because there has been ‘only’ 59 convictions under the Hunting Act it doesn’t follow that hunts have been busy lawfully trail hunting for the last two decades. Protect the Wild’s Rob Pownall emphasised that the key to halting this cycle of failed prosecutions was to ban trail hunting. He said: “Time and again, cases collapse not because hunts are innocent, but because trail hunting provides a ready-made loophole. Even when foxes are clearly chased and killed on camera, prosecutions fail because intent is almost impossible to prove under the current legislation.” We need your help to make hunting a thing of the past: Read Protect the Wild’s proposal for a workable ban on the hunting of mammals with hounds. Take a look at our report on how difficult it really is to get a hunting conviction. Sign our petition calling for a proper ban on hunting. Read our 2025 report, ‘The True Face of Hunting with Hounds’. While parliament is debating a renewed ban on ‘trail hunting’ and the closing of loopholes in the law, wildlife is still in peril on a daily basis. Please consider making 2026 the year you join your local group of hunt saboteurs or monitors. Image of John Holliday via Countryside Alliance/YouTube screenshot. Video of Chris Woodward of the Wynnstay hunting courtesy of Cheshire Monitors. Image of fox running from the Vale of White Horse Hunt via screenshot/Hunt Investigation Team. Image of fox running from the Royal Artillery Hunt via Salisbury Plain Monitors. Photo of stag hunt in Twitchen, Devon courtesy of North Dorset Hunt Saboteurs. Puckeridge Hunt footage via North London Hunt Saboteurs. Picture of the Holderness Hunt’s hounds ripping up a vixen via Hull Wildlife Defenders. Many thanks to all the sabs and monitors who continue to take considerable risks to document cruelty and lawbreaking by hunts. Be part of a growing movement backing Protect the Wild Protect the Wild is independent by design. We don’t take money from corporations, industry bodies, or political interests. Everything we do - undercover investigations, hard-hitting animations, fearless journalism, reports, and campaigns — is powered by thousands of ordinary people giving a few pounds a month. Whether it be shutting down the Guga hunt and ending hunting with hounds or taking on the bird shooting industry and speaking out for Badgers in the campaign to end the cull. If you believe British wildlife deserves defenders who won’t compromise become a monthly supporter today. Become a Monthly Supporter A guest post by Tom Anderson Journalist for Protect the Wild Subscribe to Tom SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FORESTRY ENGLAND & WELL BEING AMONGST THE TREES — I WILL PLANT FIVE MORE TOMORROW

View online > A woman sits at the bottom of a tree, tilting her face to the sun Elevate your energy in the forest this year There's no better time than these first frost-touched months to map out a year rooted in the nourishing power of the forest. When you step into the trees, you're putting your mental and physical health right at the top of your priority list, exactly where they belong. From exploring new trails for the first time to dipping your toe into the art of forest bathing, here are 10 reasons to spend time in the forest in 2026. Take a look A woman crouches down in her Muck Boots and a khaki coat to say hello to a dog Share what you're thankful for and win We've teamed up with our wellbeing partner, Muck Boots, to bring you a chance to win a goody bag packed with treats perfect for forest lovers. The prize includes a pair of Muck Boots, a membership, and your choice of our cosy clothing. Enter now View of forest and hills from Carron Crag trail at Grizedale 12 forest viewpoints to discover in 2026 If one of your new year's resolutions was to embrace nature, let us help with this handy list of our forests' most breathtaking viewpoints. Get a panoramic new perspective and while you're there, sample what each of these unique locations have to offer. See the list Pine marten standing on a log Our nature highlights of 2025 2025 was another exciting year of incredible firsts and long-awaited returns in the nation's forests. From beaver kits born at Cropton Forest to the reintroduction of pine martens to their native habitat of Exmoor National Park, here's a roundup of our biggest breakthroughs of the last year. Read the blog A woman looks upwards at the forest canopy over her head Leave a gift that grows the future A gift in your will is a meaningful way to care for the forests you love. Your legacy will help support wildlife, nurture nature, and ensure future generations can enjoy their beauty and wonder. Download our free guide today. Find out more Two women on a Go Ape zip line Escape the ordinary all year round with Go Ape Rediscover your spark with a Go Ape Annual Pass. Step away from the digital noise and reconnect with nature, yourself, and those who matter most. Enjoy year-round forest adventures and find your escape in the canopy. Explore now Banner titled 'National membership', with a badge saying 'Now only £8 a month' and subtitled 'Terms and conditions apply.' framing a family walking through the forest. Pin icon Visit Heart icon Membership Donate icon Donate Fb Ig P Yt Hero image photo credit: Johnny Hathaway This newsletter contains personalised links for you. Protect your personal data by using this link to safely share the content you love with friends. Forestry England, 620 Bristol Business Park, Coldharbour Lane Bristol. BS16 1EJ Content not quite right for you? Change or update your interest preferences or favourite forests. If you prefer not to receive emails from us, please unsubscribe. Privacy policy.

FROM PROTECT THE WILD — SCOTS TO CONSIDER GUGA HUNT AFTER MAY — ITS A SLOW GRIND!

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Guga hunt petition carried into next Parliament as pressure mounts on NatureScot ROB POWNALL JAN 21 READ IN APP Photo taken at Protect the Wild’s demonstration today outside the Scottish Parliament calling for an end to the Guga hunt Today, Protect the Wild returned to Edinburgh for another protest outside the Scottish Parliament as Rachel Bigsby’s petition calling for an end to the licensing of the Guga hunt on Sula Sgeir reached a critical stage. While the Scottish Government confirmed it has no plans to amend Section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, the committee made the significant decision to shortlist the petition as one of the few that will remain open and carry over into the next Parliament, due to the Scottish elections taking place this May. That matters. The committee explicitly conceded that it did not have enough time to properly debate or scrutinise the issue before the election. In political terms, that is a semi-victory. The petition wasn’t dismissed, parked, or closed down. It was recognised as too important to rush, and that acknowledgement alone speaks volumes about the level of public concern. The petition, started by nature photographer Rachel Bigsby (speaking below) and supported by Protect the Wild, calls for an end to the annual licensing of the Guga hunt, a practice that involves killing young gannets just weeks before they would fledge. While defenders frame it as tradition, the reality is that it is increasingly impossible to justify at a time when seabirds are under severe pressure from avian influenza, climate breakdown, and declining food availability. That concern deepened further when a licence was granted in 2025 despite bird flu affecting the colony. The Scottish Government’s refusal today to change the law is deeply disappointing, but it does not mean future hunts are inevitable. Far from it. The power now sits squarely with NatureScot, which must decide each year whether to grant a licence and whether doing so is compatible with the long-term stability of the Sula Sgeir gannet population. Based on the available evidence, it is becoming increasingly difficult to see how any robust assessment could honestly conclude that continued killing is compatible with that duty. The RSPB has already highlighted that the number of breeding birds on Sula Sgeir fell by 23% between 2021 and 2023, with highly pathogenic avian influenza the suspected cause. It has called for the licensing of the hunt to be paused until populations recover to pre-HPAI levels and disease risk falls from Very High to at least Medium. Add to that the welfare concerns inherent in killing young birds before they have even left the nest, and the case for caution becomes overwhelming. Public opinion is unequivocal. The petition has now passed 80,000 signatures, making it one of the most supported petitions since the Scottish Parliament’s system was introduced in 2004. A FindOutNow survey commissioned by Protect the Wild in late 2025 found that 72% of people do not believe the hunt is culturally important, and 69% believe it should be banned outright. So while today’s debate didn’t deliver legislative change, it did something else just as important. It drew a clear line. From this point on, no one can claim this issue hasn’t been scrutinised, challenged, or opposed at scale. More people than ever before are now aware about the Guga hunt and share our desire to see it ended. Today’s events were covered yet again by the BBC and some of Scotland’s biggest papers (The Scotsman and The Herald). As brilliantly put by Devon Docherty from Animal Concern, today very much marks day one of a renewed and focused campaign calling on NatureScot to withdraw the licence. The question it must now answer is simple. Will it continue to permit the killing of young gannets while the colony has yet to properly recover from avian flu and other threats, or will it continue to allow this senseless slaughter to continue. A clear majority of people already know the answer. SIGN THE PETITION TO NATURESCOT Be part of a growing movement backing Protect the Wild Protect the Wild is independent by design. We don’t take money from corporations, industry bodies, or political interests. Everything we do - undercover investigations, hard-hitting animations, fearless journalism, reports, and campaigns — is powered by thousands of ordinary people giving a few pounds a month. Whether it be shutting down the Guga hunt and ending hunting with hounds or taking on the bird shooting industry and speaking out for Badgers in the campaign to end the cull. If you believe British wildlife deserves defenders who won’t compromise become a monthly supporter today. Become a Monthly Supporter SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM PROTECT THE WILD — A DIVIDED NATION — SOME WANT TO KILL FOR THEIR FUN

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Tory MP's opinion poll on hunting not worth the paper it's written on Stuart Anderson, Tory MP for South Shropshire, proves nothing... TOM ANDERSON JAN 20 ∙ GUEST POST READ IN APP Stuart Anderson, Tory MP for South Shropshire, has released an opinion poll on the Labour government’s plans to enact a stronger ban on trail hunting. Both Anderson’s poll and his statements at the recent parliamentary debate on rural communities are questionable to say the least. Anderson, whose share of the vote in 2024 was down -31%, is joining the likes of Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage, who nailed his pro-hunt colours firmly to the mast once again when he attended a Boxing Day Hunt in Kent. He’s also in company with Conservative MP for Thirsk and Malton Kevin Hollinrake, who has been spearheading the parliamentary pro-bloodsport camp. Anderson shared a video on Facebook with a headline that 63% of South Shropshire residents who took part in a recent poll were against tightening the law on trail hunting. In it he pledges his own support for so-called ‘trail hunting’. However, it doesn’t take much insight to see that these figures are hardly representative of a majority view. In the first place, the ‘survey’ was on Anderson’s personal website, which almost certainly immediately limits who would see it to his supporters. His views are well-known, and the ‘survey’ was placed below a paragraph of text that opened with: “The government’s plan to ban trail hunt is yet more proof that the government does not understand rural communities like South Shropshire. For many of us, trail hunting is an important tradition...” Unbiased, it was not… Even with such overt campaigning, less than 2.5% of South Shropshire residents responded. The poll simply showed that 1196 of the 76k+ residents in his constituency were against the ban. It proved nothing. This fact didn’t escape those who read Anderson’s post on Facebook, one person quite rightly asking: “Can you confirm the political affiliation of the 1899 people who completed the survey please? Likely that the majority who saw the survey on social media or on your website were supporters of yours, so it probably wasn’t truly representative of the electorate. Please don’t dress it up as the views of the majority of South Shropshire.” Protect the Wild’s founder Rob Pownall was also unimpressed by Anderson’s poll. He commented: “Cherry-picked surveys don’t equal public support. The vast majority of people in this country, both in urban and rural areas want to see an end to hunting with hounds, and it’s time for Stuart Anderson to respect that fact, and represent the views of the public, not side with a tiny handful of people desperate to keep this sick pastime alive.” The law has been failing to protect foxes Anderson, who narrowly avoided defeat by Lib-Dem candidate Matthew Green in 2024, took part in the debate on ‘rural communities that took place in parliament on 07 January, flying the flag for fox hunting. He wheeled out another set of deeply unconvincing figures to try to persuade the house that the supposed fact that there were “only“ 44 convictions of fox hunters between 2003 and 2024 meant that hunts hadn’t been committing crimes. He said: “Based on those statistics, they should not ban anything, because the stats do not support the idea that there is widespread criminality in trail hunting. There is no evidence of that at all.” There is masses of evidence. Sabs and monitors have documented literally hundreds of examples of hunts flouting the law. Anyone who has been paying attention will know that the police are reluctant to make arrests in relation to wildlife crimes, and rarely is anyone arrested or brought before the courts. When prosecutions do happen, they often fail. A recent report by Wildlife and Countryside Link found that the police and courts did not take crimes against non-human animals seriously and didn’t put enough resources into them. To give just one example, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) dropped a seemingly cast iron case against the Holderness Hunt last year. The Hunt had been caught red-handed, allowing its hounds to chase and kill a vixen. The footage from Hull Wildlife Monitors was clear as day, but the CPS dropped it claiming the evidence was insufficient. Protect the Wild’s Charlotte Smith wrote at the time: “the law protects hunters. It shields them behind loopholes. It fails wildlife, saboteurs, and monitors alike. This is the reality for those trying to uphold a failing law. Volunteers risk their safety, gather evidence, and confront the cruelty head-on. Yet, again and again, justice slips through the cracks” One thing’s for sure, the pro-hunt side can’t seem to get their story straight either. In a recent debate aired on BBC Five, Tim Bonner - CEO of the pro-hunt Countryside Alliance made the opposite argument to Anderson. Bonner argued that, because there have been some convictions under the current Hunting Act, it shows that the Act is fit for purpose and doesn’t need to be changed. Bonner and Anderson have at least one thing in common: they are both feeding the public with straw-man arguments. Numbers aren’t Anderson’s strong suit However, the figures that Anderson presented to parliament are also wrong. Protect the Wild has been monitoring the number of hunting-related convictions and we have recorded a total of 59 convictions covering 78 charges of illegal hunting under Section 1 of the Hunting Act. There has been a significant uptick in the number of successful prosecutions since 2022. On top of that, we are aware of a further eight cases of illegal hunting where defendants are currently awaiting trial. Rural people hate hunting too Anderson’s poll and Facebook post feeds into an age-old falsehood that the government’s plans to strengthen the ban are an attack on rural communities and that rural people overwhelmingly support hunting. To be frank, it’s the same old crap that the Countryside Alliance has been reeling out for more than two decades now. There’s virtually no difference between rural and urban opinions on fox hunting in the UK. A YouGov poll on 29 December 2025 found that 50% of rural Britons surveyed supported the government’s proposed ban, while 35% of rural people polled opposed it. That’s a pretty similar figure to the UK overall. YouGov found that 50% of the total number of UK respondents in the UK supported the government’s planned ban, while only 29% opposed it. Protect the Wild’s Rob Pownall slammed the pro-hunt side’s duplicity in this video, responding to a speech made at one of this year’s Boxing Day Hunts: Anderson used the 07 January debate to trot out another tired argument about hunts being a “cherished” part of the community and supporting rural economies too. But the YouGov stats showed that other rural people didn’t agree with him. Their poll found that more than half of rural people thought that hunting was not important socially or economically to rural communities. Protect the Wild commissioned a Find Out Now poll in 2025 which yielded even clearer results. It found that 60% of rural respondents and 72% of urban respondents would support a stronger ban on hunting, and nearly 50% of rural respondents believed hunting with hounds was not being conducted legally in their area. Rural people versus hunting A recent report by Protect the Wild entitled ‘Rural people versus hunting’ found that: “the “town vs. country divide” simply does not exist. Rural sentiment mirrors urban sentiment around 10%, a reflection of lived experience, rooted in direct experience of the harm hunts cause: hounds trespassing through gardens, scaring livestock, roads blocked, threats made, and property damaged, not ideology. Far from preserving tradition, hunting with hounds has become synonymous with fear, conflict, and disorder in rural life.” The report looked at reputable opinion polls conducted between 2004, when the Hunting Act came into place, and today. It found that: “Despite pro-hunt organisations, such as the Countryside Alliance, British Hound Sports Association,and previously the Hunting Office, and Masters of Foxhounds Association, frequently claiming that hunting enjoys rural backing, no credible public surveys in the last 20 years show a majority of rural residents supporting fox hunting.” 2004 (YouGov): 61% supported the Hunting Act ban; 30% opposed. 2005 (Ipsos MORI/BBC Countryfile): 47% supported the ban; 26% opposed; Scotland showed 52% support vs 21% opposed. 2008 (Animal Aid / Guardian): 70–72% wanted the ban to continue. 2009 (Ipsos MORI for IFAW & LACS): 75% supported keeping the ban; 72% of rural respondents agreed, with a minimal rural/urban difference. 2012 (Ipsos MORI): 76% opposed re-legalising fox hunting; 81% opposed deer hunting; 83% opposed hare coursing. 2015 (YouGov, 10-Year Anniversary): 51% supported, 33% opposed; little difference between urban (52%) and rural (49%). 2015 (Ipsos MORI for LACS): 83% wanted the ban upheld; rural 84%, urban 82%. 2016 (Ipsos MORI): 84% against legalising fox hunting; rural opposition 82%. 2017 (Survation): 64% opposed repeal; only 11% supported. Even among Conservatives, just 16% wanted hunting re-legalised. 2019 (YouGov for LACS): 79% supported closing “trail hunting” loopholes; 74% supported jail terms for illegal hunting. 2021–2023 (YouGov tracker): 70–80% opposed recreational hunting; no regional divide. 2024 (YouGov 20-Year Poll): 79% want the ban to remain; 12% favour repeal. 2024 (Find Out Now/Electoral Calculus for LACS): 76% support strengthening the law; 70% of rural voters agree; 58% would back pro-ban political candidates. 2024 (Protect the Wild/Survation): Only 18% believe trail hunting is genuine; strong majority say it’s a cover for illegal hunting and want stricter legislation. 2025 (Protect the Wild/Find out now): 60% of rural respondents and 72% of urban respondents would support a stronger ban on hunting and nearly 50% of rural respondents believed hunting with hounds was not being conducted legally in their area. Charlotte Smith who authored the report carried out 10 in-depth interviews with rural people who had all suffered due to the actions of hunts. The stories were bleak, recounting riders and hounds rampaging through gardens and, in one case, the killing of a cherished family pet. These respondents told a wholly different story to Anderson’s, one of chaos and of aggression, arrogance and a cold disregard for the lives of people in rural areas. As we head towards a strengthened ban on trail hunting, we need to be prepared to hear these same arguments again and again. But repetition doesn’t make the pro-hunt rhetoric true. Both rural and urban people overwhelmingly oppose hunting and support a strengthened ban. Use Protect the Wild’s automated tool to email your MP now and register your support for a proper ban. Take a look at our report on how difficult it really is to get a hunting conviction. Sign our petition calling for a proper ban on hunting, and check out our proposal for a workable ban on the hunting of mammals with hounds. Read Protect the Wild’s 2025 report, ‘The True Face of Hunting with Hounds’. Be part of a growing movement backing Protect the Wild Protect the Wild is independent by design. We don’t take money from corporations, industry bodies, or political interests. Everything we do - undercover investigations, hard-hitting animations, fearless journalism, reports, and campaigns — is powered by thousands of ordinary people giving a few pounds a month. If you believe British wildlife deserves defenders who won’t compromise, become a monthly supporter today. Become a Monthly Supporter A guest post by Tom Anderson Journalist for Protect the Wild Subscribe to Tom SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION — ALL IN THE WILD NEED OUR HELP

view online Bumblebee Conservation Trust logo Side profile of bumblebee on purple flower with blurred background, dated January 2026 Hello 2026! Welcome to the first newsletter of 2026. January may feel quiet for bumblebees, but there's more happening than you think. We're back and buzzing to help you make a difference this year for the UK's bumblebees. Let's bee-gin! 🐝 Where do bumblebees go in winter? 🐝 Huge bumblebee looking for hibernation spot on earth and grass Most bumblebees don't make it through winter at all! As temperatures drop, the old colony dies back and only newly mated queens survive, tucking themselves away underground, in leaf litter or even compost heaps to hibernate. When spring arrives, those queens wake up to start brand-new colonies from scratch. Explore the bumblebee lifecycle 🐝 Membership offer ✨ Montage of bumblebee photo, free bumblebee toy and pack contents including leaflets Bee-lieve it or not, January is the perfect time to support bumblebees – and we’ve added a little extra thank you to make joining even sweeter! For a limited time only, when you sign up with a Family or Benefactor Membership, you’ll receive a FREE bumblebee soft toy worth £18 when you join* 🐝 When you become a member, you’re helping to create and restore wildflower meadows, research how climate change affects bumblebees, and support farmers to create bumblebee-friendly habitats. What’s not to love. Join today! (*While stocks last). Become a Benefactor or Family member 👉 Take action for bumblebees 📣 Placards raised with Houses of Parliament in background We have two new campaigning actions you can take right now to help protect bumblebees and their habitats. ✅ Sign the petition to ask the government to get peat out of gardens, once and for all. Extracting peat for use as compost destroys vital carbon-rich and nature-friendly habitats, releasing centuries of stored CO2 into the atmosphere. ✅ Add your name to a letter to Ed Miliband (Secretary of State for Energy and Net Zero) before the government makes damaging changes to habitat regulations, putting wildlife under threat. You will find links to these actions below. Together, we can give bumblebees a voice and make a difference. Add your voice 🫵 Fuel the fun! Fundraise for impact 🙌 Three people with hands in air on top of a mountain with the Pollin8 graphic in black and white Take on a Pollin8 challenge and raise money for bumblebees in 2026 in a way that works for you! Run, walk, host a picnic, hold a plant sale or get creative! Every challenge helps protect the UK's bumblebees and the places they need to thrive. It's a bee-rilliant way to do something you enjoy. Find out more 👇🏽 Start your challenge❤️ Bumblebee in the spotlight 🔎 Bumblebee flying in to land on red flower with sparkle graphics in two places The Buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) is one of the 'Big Eight' common and widespread bumblebees. Let's take a closer look. The Buff-tailed bumblebee Want to follow the Bumblebee Conservation Trust on social media? Click on the icons below to stay up-to-date. YouTube icon Did you know you can also follow the social media channels of our projects on X: @nikkigammans @BuzzingWales @BuzzingShrill @BuzzingScotland Bumblebee Conservation Trust. Registered Charity No: 1115634 / Scottish Charity No: SC042830. © 2026 Bumblebee Conservation Trust. All rights reserved. You are receiving this newsletter because you are already a member, subscribed via our website, an event or when becoming a volunteer. We hope you enjoy reading it! Registered address: International House, 109-111 Fulham Palace Road, London, W6 8JA; Correspondence address: Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Beta Centre, Stirling University Innovation Park, Stirling FK9 4NF Unsubscribe

FROM PROTECT THE WILD — WE CAN HELP THEM BY MAKING A REGULAR CONTRIBUTION

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more I need to be honest about Protect the Wild ROB POWNALL JAN 19 READ IN APP Protect the Wild is at a turning point. I started this organisation in 2015 as a 16-year-old with a Facebook page, a lot of anger about animal cruelty, and nothing else. No money. No grants. No wealthy backers. For years, I ran everything alongside school and university, funding our work by selling keyrings and car stickers from home and putting every penny back into campaigning. There were no staff, no infrastructure, and no safety net. Just persistence. Slowly, it grew. Investigations. Reports. Animations. Campaigns people said were too controversial. Today, Protect the Wild reaches millions of people every month. We have helped push hunting with hounds to the brink, exposed trail hunting, pressured landowners to ban hunts, and kept the issue alive when many wanted it to disappear. We have helped drive the badger cull to the edge of extinction, and we are preparing to take on the bird shooting industry through release of the largest undercover investigation ever undertaken in the UK. We have done all of this without corporate money, government grants, or watering down our language. Protect the Wild is powered by the people. Right now, 7,342 supporters give a small monthly donation to make this work possible. I am sharing that number because transparency matters, and because those people are the reason we can run undercover investigations, produce hard-hitting media, and employ a small but committed team. But I need to be honest. At the moment, I am juggling fundraising, communications, investigations, campaign strategy, and leadership. That approach got us this far, but it is not sustainable if we want to turn momentum into lasting victories for animals. And the next phase matters. While politicians backtrack and cruelty continues under the guise of tradition, too many organisations stay cautious or silent. Hunting with hounds still causes suffering. Birds are bred and killed for sport. Wildlife is persecuted with public money. Protect the Wild exists because that silence is unacceptable. This year is about building something durable and effective. About applying pressure that is relentless and impossible to ignore. Become a monthly supporter Our goal is simple. 10,000 monthly supporters. Not for the sake of a number, but because it changes what is possible. It means year-round undercover investigations, more powerful media, and the capacity to focus on winning rather than just surviving. This is not about big donations. If thousands of people give just £2 or £3 a month, it becomes real power. If you already support Protect the Wild monthly, thank you. You are the reason this organisation exists. If you do not, this is your invitation to step in and be part of what comes next. We are not here to soften language or play politics. We are here to call out cruelty wherever it hides and build the pressure needed to end it. Thank you for standing with us, Rob Pownall SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

SOMETHING CHEERFUL FROM MARINE CONSERVATION SOCIETY

Brighter days are coming View in browser A close up of a hermit crab standing on top of a peach-coloured sun starfish Credit: Dan Bolt Hi John, We're over halfway through January already, whew! How are you doing? How does a top-notch sealife sightings playlist sound to banish the winter blues? I've been craving some warm sunshine on my face and dreaming about all the incredible wildlife I'll hopefully be seeing by the coast this year. With brighter days (literally) ahead, I started researching what could start appearing on our shores very soon and it brought me quite a lot of joy, so I thought I'd share the goods with you by creating a playlist for your viewing pleasure. From basking sharks to rare leatherback turtles, UK waters are a treasure trove of marine life. I hope the videos bring a smile to your face. Take me to the sealife sightings playlist If you'd like some more inspiration about UK waters, grab a cuppa and check out our 24 reasons why UK waters are important blog. I'll be in touch again soon, but in the meantime, I'll leave you with the fact that each day for the rest of January is getting lighter by approximately 2 minutes per day - yippee! Amy Digital Channels Manager Marine Conservation Society Two seals swimming underwater. Text overlaid reads: The ocean captures more carbon than trees. But only a healthy ocean can combat the climate crisis. Let's restore ocean health together - donate today Donate Our shop Contact us Unsubscribe The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) is the UK charity dedicated to protecting our seas, shores and wildlife. Marine Conservation Society | Company Limited by Guarantee (England and Wales) No. 2550966 Registered Charity No. England and Wales No. 1004005 | Scotland No. SC037480 VAT No. 321 4912 32 Registered Office: Overross House, Ross Park, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, HR9 7US. Scottish Office: CBC House, 24 Canning Street, Edinburgh, EH3 8EG.

FROM PROTECT THE WILD — HOUNDS OUT OF CONTROL IN NEWRY

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more SHAMEFUL! Newry Hunt kill cat in private garden Rodney's body hidden by hunt after hounds riot through garden TOM ANDERSON JAN 19 ∙ GUEST POST READ IN APP On 30 December Chloe, a dog groomer from Rathfriland, County Down, found the lifeless body of her companion animal, Rodney the cat, behind a wall close to her house. When she watched footage from a camera installed at her home, she saw what had happened: the Newry Hunt’s out-of-control hounds had entered Chloe’s property and torn Rodney apart. Instead of taking responsibility and apologising, members of the hunt callously tried to cover it up by throwing his body over the wall. Take a look at this damning footage, which Chloe shared on Facebook: ‘Lack of transparency and responsibility’ Chloe was particularly disgusted that the hunt hadn’t come clean and told her what had happened. Instead, they tried to cover their tracks. She wrote: “The failure to report the killing and the disposal of my cat’s body demonstrates a complete lack of transparency and responsibility. I consider this handling of the situation to be unacceptable and deeply distressing.” She points out that she has had no face-to-face apology from the hunt. Neither had she received any reassurance that anything would be done about it, or that changes would be made by the Hunt to prevent the same thing from happening again to someone else. Chloe said she was “heartbroken” and felt like she had been treated with total disregard. She continued: “The loss alone is heartbreaking, but the actions that followed have made this even more painful. No one should have to discover such a thing without explanation, and no family should be treated with such disregard on their own property.” ‘Total disregard for animals’ lives’ Unfortunately, this is by no means an isolated incident. Killings of companion animals by hunts are an all too common occurrence. Protect the Wild’s founder Rob Pownall knows this all too well: “It is is utterly sickening. A companion animal has been killed, their body discarded and apparently hidden, as though their life meant nothing. My heart goes out to the cat’s guardian, who is now dealing with an unimaginable loss. We have seen this mentality before with the Western Hunt in England and now again in Northern Ireland. It speaks to a culture of cruelty, secrecy and total disregard for animals’ lives. This is not an isolated incident. It is yet another reminder of the depravity that exists within hunting, and why these activities cannot be trusted to operate around animals, people or communities.” ‘Mini’s Law’ Mini the cat was killed after being savaged by hunting hounds in 2021 What Rob was referring to is the shockingly similar case of Mini the cat, who was chased and killed by hounds from the Western Hunt outside her home in west Cornwall in March 2021. The Hunt tried to hide the evidence of what happened to Mini too. But Mini’s guardian, Carly, found out the truth. She pressured Westminster to enact Mini’s law, which sought to legislate against any activity involving hunting hounds taking place in a residential area or in any other public place. The UK Government petition on Mini’s law started an important conversation and led to a debate in Westminster in 2022. While the debate didn’t result in immediate legislative change, it fed into the public discourse about the need for a ban on so-called ‘trail hunting’. On top of what happened to Rodney and Mini, hounds from the East Sussex and Romney Marsh Hunt tore through a cat sanctuary in Hastings, England in 2018. The incident scattered dozens of cats, and more than 20 of them were never found. Not just cats This year, Protect the Wild has released a report documenting the killing, disappearance or psychological traumatisation of companion animals and sanctuary animals after incidents involving hunts. It’s not just cats who have been harmed: it’s also goats, rheas, dogs, horses, alpacas and even camels. Protect the Wild’s Charlotte Smith, who authored the report, wrote: “hunting hounds have repeatedly caused widespread harm to domestic and sanctuary animals across England and Wales. This damage is not symbolic or rare, it is deeply personal, often violent, and almost always traumatic for the rural residents affected.” These incidents are not the fault of the hounds. This is on the hunts that train their dogs to kill and then lead their packs through residential areas with little regard for the communities they disrupt or the animals whose lives are ripped away from them. The Newry Hunt owes Chloe an apology for what happened. More than that, we need to stop this cruel and dangerous bloodsport once and for all. Northern Ireland is the only place in the UK where hunting mammals with hounds is still legal. An attempt to legislate against hunting through a private members’ bill was defeated in the Northern Ireland Assembly in December 2021. Chloe, Rodney’s guardian, shared a petition by the League Against Cruel Sports (LACS) calling on Stormont to ban hunting with dogs. If you are a resident of Northern Ireland you can sign the petition here. Monitors and hunt sabs are on the frontline week after week, protecting both our wildlife and companion animals too. Consider joining your local group or making a donation to support their work, and check out NI Hunt Saboteurs. Read Protect the Wild’s 2025 report, ‘The True Face of Hunting with Hounds’ and take a look at our Hunt Havoc website. Support Protect the Wild with a small monthly donation We only ask for a few pounds a month because our strength isn’t big donors or hidden backers. It’s thousands of ordinary people chipping in small amounts. Together, that becomes unstoppable. Your support powers everything we do to defend British wildlife: undercover investigations, hard-hitting animations, fearless journalism, detailed reports, equipment and mental health support for activists, protests, and pressure campaigns that hold the powerful to account. Our goal is 200 new monthly supporters. We’re currently at 157 Support Protect the Wild A guest post by Tom Anderson Journalist for Protect the Wild Subscribe to Tom SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

THE HUNT SABOTEURS CONTINUE WITH HOW TO END HUNTING

View this email in your browser Hi, Supporter Witness The End Of Hunting: Aligning Hunting Act Penalties With The Animal Welfare Act 2006 The Hunt Saboteurs Association has produced a booklet titled ‘Witness The End Of Hunting’ which outlines our plans to stop hunters in their tracks or – at least – get them into court with a high chance of prosecution. Fox hunter helping the police with their enquiries. In this sixth and final article, the HSA looks at our proposal to align Hunting Act offences with those of the Animal Welfare Act 2006. At present the penalties for breaching the Hunting Act are a Level 5 fine which has no limits on the amount. However, the reality is this equates to under a £1000 fine, even for serial offenders. We suggest that the Act should be aligned with the Animal Welfare Act 2006 as follows: a) On conviction or indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale. b) The owner of an animal in relation to which the offence was committed, the court by or before which he is convicted may, instead of or in addition to dealing with him in any other way, make an order depriving him of ownership of the animal and for its disposal. c) Any hunting article that was used in the commission of the offence or in the possession of the defendant when arrested to be confiscated. A hunting article is defined in section 9(3) as any article designed or adapted for use in connection with hunting a wild mammal and any vehicle used in the commission of the offence for example, the van or trailer (does not have to be a motor vehicle) used to bring the dogs to the start of the hunt. d) A recordable offence under ‘The National Police Records (Recordable Offences) Regulations 2000’. e) Act to recognise that a hunting organisation is a corporate body and all staff present on day of the offence, directors of the organisation. Police attend a meet of the Albany & West Lodge Bassets. At present, the Act does include a specific power of forfeiture in section 9 of the Act. The following can be forfeited when a person is convicted of any offence under the Act: Any dog (but note, not horses) that was used in the commission of an offence under Part 1 of the Act or in the possession of defendant when arrested. Any hunting article that was used in the commission of the offence or in the possession of defendant when arrested. A hunting article is defined in section 9(3) as any article designed or adapted for use in connection with hunting a wild mammal and any vehicle used in the commission of the offence for example the van or trailer (does not have to be a motor vehicle) used to bring the dogs to the start of the hunt. This is regularly used against hare coursers, and we would like to see the courts use this by default against Hunting Act offenders, but this would assume that with an increase in penalties that the courts would take any breach in a more serious light. The police are also asking that the Act is made a ‘recordable offence’. A recordable offence is any offence in England and Wales where the police must keep records of convictions and offenders on the Police National Computer. That is a decision of the secretary of state. In the UK, only a limited number of wildlife crimes are currently recordable under Home Office counting rules. Most wildlife crimes in England and Wales are recorded as 'miscellaneous' offences, rendering them invisible in official police records and preventing accurate assessment of the problem. There is clearly much work to do to make the courts take on the seriousness of wildlife crime which the public is demanding. Join the Hunt Saboteurs Association! Support our vital work by becoming a member. Join The HSA Spread the word! Please share our news Share via email Facebook icon Instagram icon Twitter icon Logo Copyright (C) 2026 Hunt Saboteurs Association. All rights reserved. You were subscribed to the newsletter from Hunt Saboteurs Association. Our mailing address is: BM HSA, London, WC1N 3XX, U.K. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe

JANUARY UPDATE FROM CORNWALL WILDLIFE TRUST. IT’S GOOD READING

View this email in your browser JANUARY NEWS Happy new year! January has wasted no time reminding us of nature’s power, with wild weather rolling across Cornwall’s coast and countryside. While short days and stormy skies invite us to slow down, remember to take time to pull on a coat, head outdoors, and let nature shake off any hint of the January blues. NATURE NEWS Blown away by Storm Goretti We’ve had lots of messages asking how much impact Storm Goretti had on our reserves, and we’re pleased to say we got away quite lightly compared with some sites in Cornwall. Our teams moved quickly to clear paths and make everything safe. Though we lost a roof at Creney Farm, suffered some gate damage at Devichoys, and lost a number of trees, all our livestock were safe and sound. Our team have done a brilliant job with the clean-up this week, but this has taken them away from their usual conservation work, and specialist work required means costs are increasing. We’re more grateful than ever for your support which makes all of this work possible, so thank you. CALENDARS STILL AVAILABLE There’s just a few copies left of the Wild Cornwall 2026 charity calendar, now available at half price. Filled with beautiful images celebrating Cornwall’s wild places and wildlife, every purchase helps support our work - a small way to keep nature close all year round. Shop 2026 Calendar Sale EVENTS Seeding for Change Seagrass Talks Thu 29 Jan | 7pm - 8.30pm | Par Tue 10 Feb | 7pm - 8.30pm | Falmouth Join us for talks all about seagrass in your local area. Hear from local volunteers, researchers, and the Cornwall Wildlife Trust team. Shoresearch Training Wed 4 Feb | 7pm - 9pm | Online Get a head start and learn how to conduct an intertidal survey for Cornwall Wildlife Trust before attending one of our practical training sessions (check our events page for more dates). See all events JANUARY SPOTTERS GUIDE With the summer crowds gone, January is a wonderful time to connect with Cornwall’s quieter wild places. The colder months bring rich rewards for birdwatchers, with estuaries, wetlands and coastlines alive with activity. Large flocks of waders gather to feed on nutrient-rich mud, while lapwings reach their peak, filling winter skies with their tumbling flight and unmistakable “peewit” calls. Winter also boosts your chances of spotting birds of prey, as Cornwall’s mild climate attracts migrants from across the UK and Europe. Hen harriers, short-eared owls and merlins can all be seen hunting over open landscapes, while rocky shores host turnstones and purple sandpipers busily foraging along the tideline. It’s not just birds to look out for this month. Frogspawn can begin to appear in ponds during mild spells, marking the quiet start of a new life cycle, while foxes become more visible and vocal as breeding season peaks. Out at sea, humpback whales continue their welcome return to Cornish waters. See the full guide OPPOSE THE FINGLETON REVIEW The Fingleton Review, a new policy report commissioned by the UK Government, recommends weakening some nature protections, claiming they create costs for developers. This doesn’t just affect wildlife. Natural spaces near you, or special places you love, could be damaged or lost. Say NO to this now - before it’s too late. We’re writing to Ed Milliband to urge him to reject three key recommendations which put nature at risk. A murmaration against a dusky sky with copy over the top written to detail more about the fingleton review Email Ed Milliband JOIN THE OPEN GARDENS TEAM It’s Open Gardens 15th anniversary year, and we need your help. We’re looking for more people to join our friendly team of volunteers in a variety of roles, from logistics to event support, helping nature thrive in Cornwall. Find out more about our volunteer roles Facebook icon Instagram icon LinkedIn icon YouTube icon Images: Kingfisher (header image) - Martin Yelland Effects of Storm Goretti at Devichoys - Nick Marriott Short-eared owl - Adrian Langdon Fox - Terry Dunstan © 2026 Cornwall Wildlife Trust. All rights reserved. Registered charity number 214929. Privacy Policy and T&Cs Our mailing address is: Cornwall Wildlife Trust Five Acres, Allet, Truro, Cornwall, TR4 9DJ Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

FROM CORNWALL WILDLIFE TRUST — AN EXCITING UPDATE ON ACHIEVEMENTS

View this email in your browser a small robin perched on a tree branch Dear John, As we step into a new year, we want to start with one simple message: thank you. Because you’re a member of Cornwall Wildlife Trust, 2025 was a year of real action – and real progress – for nature. Your support helped protect wildlife and wild places across Cornwall, from our seas and estuaries to tors, moors, rivers and flower-rich meadows. Together, we made change happen. Before you read on, we’d love you to watch this short film from The Wildlife Trusts, showing how your support is part of a powerful, UK-wide movement for nature. Here are just some of the incredible things you made possible in 2025: 🌱🌼 We took action for climate and wildlife From planting 16,000 seagrass seeds in Cornwall’s estuaries to restoring heathland, grassland and wetlands through grazing, fencing and habitat creation, our work supported threatened species on land and at sea — from marsh fritillary butterflies to common dolphins and dragonflies. 🌾 Nature-friendly farming at scale In 2025, we advised 52 farmers on nature-friendly farming practices to protect rivers, soils and wildlife. In the first six months alone, this included guidance across 8,700 acres of farmland to help create and connect wildlife-rich habitats. 🌊 We stood up for our seas More than 850 supporters contacted their MP to call for an end to destructive bottom trawling in seabed Marine Protected Areas — a clear message that Cornwall’s marine life deserves better protection. 🦫 We welcomed new life — and signs of recovery — across our reserves and seas At Helman Tor nature reserve we were excited by the arrival of a pair of beaver kits, born to the adult pair that have set up home there. A growing population is good news for the reserve, as the beavers create habitats that support other wildlife. Along our coast, there were also new and increased sightings of incredible species, from humpback whales to rare and colourful sea slugs recorded (for the first time) in our waters. 🙌 We were supported by dedicated volunteers Across Cornwall, our 960-strong volunteer community helped care for nature — from restoring habitats to monitoring wildlife and inspiring action in local communities. ✨ And so much more From caring for our network of nature reserves to inspiring action across communities, your membership helped nature not just survive — but thrive. These are the moments you’ve helped create: choughs riding the sea air, seals resting on quiet beaches, dormice hidden in leafy woodlands, and meadows alive with colour and sound. Because of you, Cornwall remains a place where wildlife has a fighting chance. Thank you for being part of our community, and for everything you do for nature — now, and for the year ahead. With warmest thanks, James Webb Director of Fundraising & Communications Facebook icon Instagram icon LinkedIn icon YouTube icon © 2025 Cornwall Wildlife Trust. All rights reserved. Registered charity number 214929. Privacy Policy and T&Cs Our mailing address is: Cornwall Wildlife Trust Five Acres, Allet, Truro, Cornwall, TR4 9DJ Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.

FROM PROTECT THE WILD — MOST SIGNED FOR SCOTTISH VOTERS TO END GUGA HUNT

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Petition to end Guga hunt becomes one of the most signed in Scottish Parliament history PROTECT THE WILD JAN 16 READ IN APP Image taken by Craig O’Donnell If you receive our emails, you will already know that we have been completely obsessed with pushing Rachel Bigsby’s petition to end the Guga hunt. From the moment it launched, we had our sights set on one clear goal, to make it one of the most signed petitions in the history of the Scottish Parliament petition site. Not for bragging rights, but because numbers matter. They show politicians when something can no longer be ignored. And now, it has happened. Rachel’s petition has officially become the 5th most signed petition since the Scottish Parliament’s petition system launched in 2004. It has now passed 60,000 signatures. That is an extraordinary achievement, and it belongs to everyone who signed, shared, talked about it, and refused to let this issue fade quietly into the background. Since the release of our latest animation (narrated by the Brilliant Rachel Bigsby who set up the petiton), now seen by over 3 million people, the petition has exploded in popularity. Thousands of people have learned, often for the first time, that the Guga hunt is still being licensed in modern Scotland, and they have responded with disbelief and a clear demand for change. Sign Rachel's petition At the same time, the campaign to end the Guga hunt has continued to gain momentum beyond our own channels, with further coverage from The National newspaper and Oceanographic Magazine. Piece by piece, this issue is being dragged into the light, exactly where it belongs. A brief reminder of what is at stake The Guga hunt involves the licensed killing of gannet chicks on Sula Sgeir, birds taken just weeks before they would fledge. It is defended on the grounds of tradition, despite no longer being necessary for survival and taking place against a backdrop of growing pressure on seabird populations from disease, climate change, and food scarcity. The decision to grant a licence in 2025, even while avian influenza was affecting the colony, has only sharpened public concern and raised serious questions about welfare, biosecurity, and judgement. Wednesday matters On Wednesday 21 January, Rachel’s petition will be formally considered by the Scottish Parliament. This is the moment when all of the work, the signatures, the awareness, and the pressure, is placed directly in front of the Government. We have done everything we possibly can to get this issue noticed and to demonstrate the huge public support for ending this cruel and outdated practice. When the petition goes before Parliament on Wednesday, MSPs will see clearly that this is not a niche concern. More than 60,000 people have made their views known. We will be heading back to the Scottish Parliament on the day to physically watch the petition be considered and to mark the moment with a visible, respectful presence outside Holyrood. We will have placards and banners, and we would love to see you there if you are based nearby and would like to join us. 📍Scottish Parliament, 8:30am - Midday, Wednesday 21st January You can RSVP to the event on Facebook here. May be an image of vulture, swan and text that says "ect DO GUCE CUCS HUNY END THE MUINT ENDTIE END CUCA HUNT MIKE THS HUNT CUCA HUNT GUCA HUNT CUCA HUNT GUCA HUNT DONT CИCKMИKT TRAKTN CRCOSE HE de END THE END THE ENDTHE END THE GUGA HUNT GUCA HUNT 수화한 PAOO ገር C cиcaHbй" Image taken by Craig O’Donnell Above all else, this campaign has shown something important. People care. Awareness is spreading. Pressure is building. And the assumption that this practice can continue unchallenged is starting to crack. Support Protect the Wild with a small monthly donation We only ask for a few pounds a month because our strength isn’t big donors or hidden backers. It’s thousands of ordinary people chipping in small amounts. Together, that becomes unstoppable. Your support powers everything we do to defend British wildlife: undercover investigations, hard-hitting animations, fearless journalism, detailed reports, equipment and mental health support for activists, protests, and pressure campaigns that hold the powerful to account. Our goal is 200 new monthly supporters. We’re currently at 145 Support Protect the Wild SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM PROTECT THE WILD. THE COMMONS VOTED THREE TO ONE — BUT WILL THE HOUSE OF LORDS AGREE

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more MPs approve expansion of anti-protest powers covering animal testing sites PROTECT THE WILD JAN 14 READ IN APP I’m standing outside Parliament today because something serious just happened inside it. The House of Commons has voted 301 FOR 110 AGAINST in favour of a controversial amendment to the Public Order Act that reclassifies life sciences infrastructure, including animal testing facilities, as “key national infrastructure”. That change matters more than it sounds. By redefining private laboratories as critical national assets alongside airports, power stations, and transport networks, the government has expanded its power to restrict protest. Peaceful demonstrations near any site linked to animal testing could now carry conditions, bans, or even prison sentences of up to a year. This is not about safety. It is about control. Why this is such a dangerous expansion Animal testing does not take place in isolated buildings. Licences are held by universities, hospitals, and major research campuses, all surrounded by everyday public space. By stretching the definition of key national infrastructure this far, the government risks bringing huge areas of public space under protest restrictions, even when protests have nothing to do with laboratory work itself. Campaigners have warned for years that expanding public order powers in this way would criminalise lawful, peaceful protest. Today’s vote proves those warnings were justified. Standing With a Sign Shouldn't Mean Prison: Why We Took Action Yesterday - Protect the Wild This vote is not the end This amendment has not yet become law. It now goes to the House of Lords, which acts as Parliament’s final check. Peers can approve it, or they can oppose it and send it back to the Commons. This matters. The Lords have a strong history of pushing back when governments overreach on civil liberties and protest rights. If they intervene, this can still be stopped or forced back into debate. We have launched a tool that allows you to contact peers directly and urge them to oppose this amendment before it becomes law. Contact the Lords Peers are expected to act independently and to defend fundamental rights when the Commons fails to do so. Many take that responsibility seriously, but only if they hear from the public. If you believe peaceful protest should not carry the risk of prison, now is the moment to act. 👉 Use our tool to contact the House of Lords and demand they oppose this amendment. Silence is exactly what this legislation is designed to produce. Let’s make sure it does not work. SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

PROTECT THE WILD EXPOSES THE UNTRUTHS THAT OUR BRITISH BROADCASTING COPORATION HAVE TOLD

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more BBC covers the campaign to end the Guga hunt That visibility is already making a real difference. PROTECT THE WILD JAN 13 READ IN APP Following Saturday’s peaceful protest outside the Scottish Parliament, it’s been brilliant to see the issue reach a much wider audience. BBC Alba covered the protest on national television last night, BBC News published an online piece as well as coverage from Scotland’s biggest paper The Herald, helping bring national attention to the growing call to end the Guga hunt. That visibility is already making a real difference. Since the protest, Rachel Bigsby’s Scottish Government petition has surged, gaining 2,500 signatures in just the last two days. It is now firmly on track to become the most signed petition in the history of the platform. To get there, we need 6,000 more signatures in the next eight days, and at the current pace, that goal is absolutely within reach. You can sign it from any country and it only takes a few seconds (remember to confirm your signature via your emails once signed) Sign Rachel's petition Saturday’s protest wasn’t about shouting or spectacle. Around 60 people stood calmly and respectfully outside Holyrood, holding banners and placards, making one clear point. The Scottish Government must scrap Section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act and bring the Guga hunt to an end. BBC - Scotland - The Guga Hunters of Ness: creating the programme The hunt targets gannet chicks just weeks before they would fledge, birds taken from nesting sites and killed during a tightly controlled annual window. That this practice is still licensed (by NatureScot) in modern Scotland, even amid ongoing avian influenza concerns, is deeply troubling. What Saturday showed above all else is this. People care. Awareness is growing, scrutiny is increasing, and the idea that this hunt should continue unchallenged is starting to unravel. If you haven’t already, please sign the petition today. History is within reach, but only if we push together in the days ahead. Sign Rachel's petition Protest at Holyrood Urges Scottish Government to End the Guga Hunt Petition starter and wildlife photographer Rachel Bigsby at Saturday’s Holyrood Protest Support Protect the Wild with a small monthly donation We only ask for a few pounds a month because our strength isn’t big donors or hidden backers. It’s thousands of ordinary people chipping in small amounts. Together, that becomes unstoppable. Your support powers everything we do to defend British wildlife: undercover investigations, hard-hitting animations, fearless journalism, detailed reports, equipment and mental health support for activists, protests, and pressure campaigns that hold the powerful to account. Our goal is 200 new monthly supporters. We’re currently at 135 Support Protect the Wild SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM WILD JUSTICE ON BREACHES OF LAW ON GAME BIRD RELEASES IN SUFFOLK

Good morning! Today’s newsletter is a special edition, bringing you an update on our ongoing investigations into the world of gamebird releases. We’ve been busy, both on the ground and digitally, scrutinising the complex and somewhat murky world of gamebird (Pheasant and Red-legged Partridge) releases around protected sites. Today we can tell you we’ve found another case of unlawful gamebird release, as well as associated non-compliance with mandatory biosecurity measures, at a site that might be familiar to many of you... You can read a full-length blog about our findings here, complete with more photo evidence and maps. Read on for a shorter summary of this case. The beginning 2020: Wild Justice wins a legal challenge against Defra, forcing it to introduce a licensing scheme for the release of gamebirds near sites protected for wildlife (Natura 2000 sites). 2021: General Licence 43 (GL43) is introduced for shoot operators wishing to release gamebirds on or near (within a 500m buffer zone) Special Areas of Conservation (SACs). Shoot operators wanting to release birds on Special Protection Areas (SPAs) still require individual licences. 2023: Wild Justice wins a legal challenge, after showing that individual licences granted by Defra Ministers for gamebird releases on or near the Deben Estuary SPA in Suffolk and the Breckland SPA in Norfolk was contrary to Natural England’s (NE) formal advice. 2024: General Licence 45 (GL45) is introduced for shoot operators wanting to release gamebirds on or close to Special Protection Areas (SPAs). March 2025: Defra announced it would not be issuing General Licence 45 for the 2025 shooting season, meaning shoots wanting to release gamebirds on or near SPAs in 2025 would require individual licences once again. This was because of the heightened risk of transmitting Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). April 2025: Natural England take this a step further and advise that some licences are likely to only be permitted with a delayed release date for gamebirds, if permitted at all. August 2025: The UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer announces new mandatory biosecurity measures to counter the heightened risk of HPAI in England. These measures include requirements such as disinfectant regimes, cleaning and hygiene of feeding and water stations, pens and apparatus, removal of dead gamebirds and reporting of dead wild birds. Back to the Deben Estuary - a tip off In August 2025, Wild Justice received a tip off from a supporter at Ramsholt, next to the Deben Estuary in Suffolk. He was familiar with our case in 2023, and so alarm bells started ringing when he saw lots of young Pheasants and Red-legged Partridges running around the site. After seeing his photos and a grid reference of a Red-legged Partridge release pen, we reckoned the gamebirds were being released within 500m of the Deben Estuary SPA. Asking questions: Curious, we got in touch with Natural England, asking them a few questions, including: Had an individual licence to release gamebirds on or near this SPA been issued for the 2025/26 shooting season? If so, on what grounds had it been approved? Could NE provide us with copies of any licence applications for 2025 at this site, and any subsequent licences issued. And then we waited. Heading into the field Whilst waiting for a reply from NE, Wild Justice headed into the field. Over several visits to Ramsholt in August and September, we found: A second Red-legged Partridge (RLP) release pen (about 1km away from the one reported by our supporter). A huge open-topped Pheasant release pen. Four different gamebird feeding stations. Lots and lots of free-roaming gamebirds. No evidence of disinfection procedures (e.g. for vehicles using the site). Dirty water stations at the release pens, as well as spilled food which remained present between our visits. A decomposing RLP in the second release pen. Suspicious findings: Recording grid references for each of our findings, we headed back to our desks, and discovered: The first RLP release pen was within the 500m buffer zone of the SPA. Conclusion:licence required. The second RLP release pen was 20m outside the 500m buffer zone. Conclusion: No licence required. The large Pheasant release pen straddled the 500m SPA buffer zone. Conclusion:licence required. We also reported our findings about the apparent non-compliance with biosecurity regulations to Suffolk County Council Trading Standards team (responsible for biosecurity investigation and enforcement), who subsequently assigned an officer to investigate this case. Some answers! On 10th September 2025, we received some answers from Natural England. They told us that two applications for individual licences to release gamebirds on or near the Deben Estuary SPA had been made – and it made for a very interesting timeline: 23rd April 2025: The first licence application was submitted to NE, for 2,450 gamebirds across several pens, to be released between July and August 2025. 14th May 2025: Natural England REJECTED this application, concluding it wasn’t possible to rule out adverse effects on the SPA. 16th May 2025: The same applicant submitted another licence application, hoping to change NE’s mind. In supplementary documents submitted with this application, the applicant said: “Before the end of February 2025 all my Days shooting at [REDACTED] had been sold for this season, with some deposits paid and the pheasant and partridge poults ordered from the game farm. Without a licence I'm going to be in a very embarrasing [sic] business situation”. Unknown date: Natural England REJECTED this second licence application (likely to have informed the applicant on or before 6th June 2025). Asking more questions Now we knew two things: Individual licences to permit the release of gamebirds on or close to the Deben Estuary SPA had been refused by NE. We’d seen evidence, and witnessed ourselves, gamebirds having been released within the 500m buffer zone of the Deben Estuary SPA. Naturally, we had more questions for NE and asked them what enforcement action they would be taking to address these unlawful releases. NE told us: “Where a licence has not been issued, wildlife offences are a matter for the police to investigate. Natural England will support the police in any investigation they undertake. Our recommendation is that in this instance, as you hold the relevant evidence, you should report it direct to Suffolk Constabulary”. We submitted an online report to Suffolk Constabulary the same day. Some unsatisfying answers: On 13th October 2025, we received correspondence from Suffolk County Council Trading Standards Department, letting us know that a Trading Standards Officer had visited the site. We were told the officer had provided verbal advice to the shoot operator relating to breaches of the mandatory biosecurity regulations. Asking yet more questions: Unsatisfied, we wrote back to Trading Standards and asked them: For specific detail of the verbal advice provided. Why no stronger enforcement action had been taken. Yet more unsatisfying answers: Trading Standards told us that ‘In the first instance we would always look to engage with, and provide advice to, businesses and individuals engaged in potential breaches’ and that ‘….we would also look to progress this in a positive way without resorting to immediate formal action such as prosecution.’. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they also told us ‘We are unable to share specifics of the verbal guidance provided to the responsible person in this instance, as these matters are confidential’. On 14th October 2025 we heard back from Suffolk Constabulary. They told us a Police Rural Crime Officer had visited the site (at the same time as the Trading Standards Officer) and had issued the shoot with a Community Resolution Order (CRO). We asked for details of this CRO, and of the officer’s visit, and were told: The CRO is disclosable in enhanced DBS checks, and the shoot operator won’t be given the chance to receive another CRO for any future offences. The CRO advises the shoot operator to work with Trading Standards and adhere to their advice. The current shoot operator was new and so was not the same person who applied for the licence from NE (hmm…). The original applicant and the new shoot operator weren’t linked to each other (another hmm…). That it was quite plausible that the new shoot operator was completely unaware of the restrictions (a very sceptical hmmm…) This new shoot owner was very remorseful and fully admitted his part in the offences. Our thoughts: Offences under the Animal Health Act 1981 and the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 can attract penalties of unlimited fines and/or custodial sentences. In our opinion, the low level of enforcement action in this case does not reflect the seriousness of the offences, nor does it offer a deterrent to other shoot operators who might be thinking of ignoring the legislation, and nor does it engender public confidence in the authorities’ ability to manage and control disease outbreak, especially HPAI. We consider it utterly implausible that the shoot operator was “not linked” to the licence applicant, as Suffolk Constabulary were led to believe. The timeline outlined above would provide only a matter of weeks (a tiny window) for a ‘new operator’ to start up, establish infrastructure, acquire birds and then release them, all supposedly without communicating with the previous shoot operator/licence applicant. In our opinion, it seems an easy loophole to exploit to avoid prosecution, and it’ll be interesting to see whether a similar explanation of a supposed change of shoot operators is used in other cases. You can read the full report on this case on our blog – click here. This is a detailed and complex case, and we don’t know how widespread this sort of offending might be. Wild Justice believes the release of millions of non-native gamebirds into the UK’s countryside each year is detrimental to wildlife and the environment. When rules attempting to reduce the impact of this damaging industry can be flouted, circumvented or ignored, with minimal sanction, it shows that enforcement isn’t up to scratch. We’ll be keeping an eye on this subject and will update you on it soon. Wild Justice relies entirely on donations to fund our work. If you think what we do is important and feel able to support us with a donation, however small, you can do so by clicking here. That's it for now, but we hope to be back soon with news of a new court date for our Badger legal challenge. Thank you once again, Wild Justice (CEO: Bob Elliot. Directors: Chris Packham and Ruth Tingay). This is the 260th Wild Justice newsletter. This email was sent to you because you subscribed to it through the Wild Justice website or through an e-action or a petition where you ticked a box. Thank you. We will only use your personal details to send you the Wild Justice newsletter. We will not give or sell your details to anyone else. You can unsubscribe at any time: there is an unsubscribe button at the foot of this email or you can reply to this email and ask us to remove you from the list (the former will happen immediately, the latter might take a few days). 124, City Road London Greater London EC1V 2NX UNITED KINGDOM Unsubscribe | Change Subscriber Options