Policy paper

Defra’s 2022 decision to issue general licence GL43: licence to release common pheasants or red-legged partridges on European sites

Published 31 May 2022

Applies to England

© Crown copyright 2022

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gamebirds-decision-to-issue-the-gamebird-general-licence-for-2022-to-2023/defras-2022-decision-to-issue-general-licence-gl43-licence-to-release-common-pheasants-or-red-legged-partridges-on-european-sites

This document was published as part of Defra’s decision to issue the gamebird release general licence for 2022 to 2023.

Read about Defra’s decision to issue the gamebird release general licence for 2023 to 2025.

Background

The release of common pheasants or red-legged partridges into the wild on European sites in England, or within 500 metres of their boundary, is only lawful under the authority of a licence.

General Licence GL43 first came into force on 31 May 2021 and expired on 30 May 2022. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) have now issued a new General Licence GL43, published on 31 May 2022.

As part of the decision to issue a new licence, Defra sought Natural England’s advice under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (this 2022 advice is included in the supporting documents). Part of Natural England’s advice was that Defra were able to rely on Natural England’s 2021 shadow Habitats Regulation Assessment (sHRA), which informed the 2021 to 2022 GL43 licence conditions.

Between January and April 2022, Defra determined the licence conditions and undertook a Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) for the 2022 to 2023 licence.

Defra considered Natural England’s advice, along with the 2021 sHRA, when making its final assessment and decision for 2022 to 2023. Natural England’s 2021 sHRA has been adopted by Defra, with some modifications, when undertaking its own 2022 HRA.

Supporting documents

The following documents support the decision to issue a general licence for 2022 to 2023:

Defra’s 2022 Habitats Regulation Assessment

This document includes:

  • Annex A - a summary of final licence proposals
  • Annex B - Natural England’s advice to Defra following the key findings of the Rapid Evidence Assessment
  • Annex C - Natural England’s 2021 shadow HRA Part 1: Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Ramsar sites with bird features in England
  • Annex D - Natural England’s 2021 shadow HRA Part 2: Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and non-bird Ramsar sites in England

Subsequent Natural England advice, including:

  • Annex E - rationale for advice on the buffer zone conditions and the treatment of terrestrial SPAs and SACs below the mean high-water mark (estuarine sites)
  • Annex F - the list of SPAs, SACs and Ramsar sites provisionally assessed and screened out of further assessment by Natural England in their shadow HRA
  • Natural England’s 2022 statutory advice, sought by Defra in line with its legal duties

Additional documents

You can read Natural England’s 2021 statutory advice alongside its 2022 advice.

Following Defra’s 2021 HRA, subsequent changes were made to the conditions of the licence concerning the release of red-legged partridges. Defra undertook an additional assessment of the changes to the partridge conditions and again sought Natural England’s advice on its assessment of those changes.

Other documents you can read include:

For 2022 to 2023, no further changes have been made to the conditions of the licence concerning the release of red-legged partridges.

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