| Author: Scottish Executive News Release 14/02/2006 | Title: Wildlife Crime Clampdown |
| Date: 2006-02-14 21:39:04 | Uploaded by: thefifer |
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WILDLIFE CRIMINALS WERE WARNED TODAY THAT THEY WILL BE CAUGHT AND PROSECUTED.
Organised criminals threaten or damage some of Scotland’s rarest and most fragile populations and habitats and this is the busiest time of the year for these crimes.
Speaking at the Police Wildlife Crime Conference at Tulliallan, Deputy Environment Minister Rhona Brankin said:
"We are determined to put an end to wildlife crime in Scotland and have given the frontline agencies, including the police and the crown office, the tools to punish anyone who harms our natural heritage in the Nature Conservation Act.
"This was the first major nature conservation legislation to be introduced to Scotland in almost 25 years.
"Wildlife criminals are organised, they plan their offences in detail and go equipped to offend. It is my priority to ensure that the laws we have put in place will stop them in their tracks and protect the wildlife which makes Scotland so special.
"The commitment of the police, the Crown Office and key conservation and welfare agencies to stop wildlife crime will send out the clearest of messages to the wildlife criminals that they will be stopped. And if successfully prosecuted, they face a custodial sentence for their actions."
ACPOS has recently approved a three-year strategy for Wildlife and Environmental Crime that involves close working with key partners ACPOS spokesman for wildlife crime, Chief Constable Paddy Tomkins, stressed that the police had placed renewed importance on such crimes across Scotland. He said:
"We now have around 100 Wildlife Crime Officers across Scotland using specialised skills and experience to tackle this vital issue.
"This approach has already seen a number of very successful operations and prosecutions which have sent a strong message to those guilty of persecuting our natural heritage.
"We have excellent working protocols with a number of groups, not least of all the Crown Office which has appointed dedicated Wildlife and Environmental Crime Fiscals.
"I am confident that we are making great strides in the fight against Wildlife Crime and I want to warn criminals who are involved in it that Scotland has the people and the expertise to catch and prosecute you."
Thomas Dysart Chair of the Wildlife and Habitats Crime Prosecution Forum Said:
"The recently formed Wildlife and Habitat Crime Prosecution Forum involves Key experts, and ensures that our response to wildlife crime is both coordinated and robust.
"By bringing representatives from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Scottish Natural Heritage together with justice, police and prosecuting authorities, we can equip ourselves with the specialist knowledge and skills required to ensure that justice is done in wildlife crime cases."
The Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime (PAW) is a UK wide initiative, which seeks to improve communication and co-ordination across all wildlife law enforcement agencies, Government and other bodies including Scottish Natural Heritage and the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
The Nature Conservation (Scotland) Act 2004 came into force in November 2004.In November 2005 a farmer from South Lanarkshire was charged with five offences under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992.He pled guilty to two of the five charges and was fined a total of £800; £500 for attempting to kill a badger and £300 for damaging a set. This was the first successful prosecution under this legislation.
The Animal Health and Welfare Bill includes proposals to make it a criminal offence to cause unnecessary suffering to any vertebrate animal under the control of man, Any wild animal which is trapped or cornered and able to escape will be protected under the new bill.
A new Royal Society for the Protection of Birds/PAW booklet will be launched today on "Wild Birds and the Law in Scotland".
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