Scotland ‘talks the talk’ on wildlife protection but does it ‘walk the walk’. At first glance the laws that are in place to protect wildlife are substantially stricter in Scotland than the rest of the UK and Scotland has often lead the way with legislation such as banning hunting with dogs. Many see the Scottish Government as a bright light in a dark world of wildlife crime but is that accolade truely deserved? Certainly Scotland has tougher laws to combat wildlife crime than the rest of the UK but being first in a group of third rate performers is not much to brag about. Many of the changes to wildlife legislation in Scotland have been brought about by the work of individual MSPs and often in the face of opposition from the Scottish Government. The Scottish National Party (S.N.P.) who have been in government for many years seem quite conflicted about wildlife crime with the grass roots pushing for action and the leadership dragging their heels as much as they decently can. Interestingly the Scottish Conservatives, normally a party to trumpet their law and order credentials, seem to have a policy of opposition to any tightening of laws that might impact on wildlife crime connected to driven grouse shooting. Perhaps the traditional patterns of land ownership that persist in Scotland cast a shadow over the way the country is governed even in the 21st century.

We do not propose to catalogue the individual differences between wildlife laws in Scotland and that of the rest of the UK but there is no question that on paper at least they are substantially stricter. The crucial question is whether these stricter laws are reducing wildlife crime and the evidence suggests clearly that they are not. Badger baiting, raptor persecution, hare coursing and illegal use of traps and snares have all gone up substantially during the last twelve months and show no signs of reducing.

To be effective strict laws and tough penalties need to be enforced. In our subsequent posts we will look at how enforcement in Scotland is managed and resourced and consider what could be done to ensure that the country lives up to its reputation of being tough on wildlife crime.