PPC123 | PESTS IN POLITICS

Our lobbying and public affairs work currently focuses on three key aims: protecting the toolkit, implementing Awaab’s Law and innovation in chemical regulation. In this issue of Pests in Politics, Ciaran talks about the steps forward we’ve made in engaging with UK Government, Devolved assemblies and MPs.

Protecting the toolkit

Working dogs

The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) launched their consultation on banning trail hunting, one of the Labour party’s manifesto commitments. 

Trail hunting started as an alternative to fox hunting which was banned in England and Wales under the Hunting Act 2004. It involves dogs following a pre-laid animal-based scent. 

This has lead to instances of foxes being either caught up in this activity and being killed, or accusations that the activity is being used as a smokescreen for illegal fox hunting.  

BPCA are responding to the consultation to ensure that the ban does not unintentionally affect the training of working dogs for tasks such as rodent detection. 

In the Northern Ireland Assembly a Hunting with Dogs Bill has been introduced which also seeks to ban trail hunting, as well as fox hunting. 

Northern Ireland is currently the only part of the UK where there are no restrictions on hunting with dogs.  

The private members bill includes exemptions for the hunting of rats and mice, as well as for purposes such as public health. However, we have written to its proposer, John Blair MLA, and other key Assembly members to ensure its definition of trail hunting also protects our work.

Glue traps

It has been announced that Scotland’s ban on the use, sale, and possession of rodent glue traps will enter into force 1 July. It will also become illegal to knowingly permit or allow another person to use or sell a glue trap. 

The measures were introduced with the Wildlife and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024, and falling foul of the ban could result in imprisonment up to 5 years, and or a fine up to £40,000. 

There is currently no licensing scheme in place, and BPCA will continue to lobby Scottish Ministers to encourage them to make use of their powers under the Act for this purpose.

Minister for Nature, Mary Creagh MP, has also commented on England’s glue trap ban, stating that no formal assessment had been made about its effectiveness in preventing their unlicensed use. She added that the government was confident that their use had reduced overall.

Chemical Regulation 

As part of the ongoing negotiations on a future UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement, the government confirmed that the Biocidal Products Regulations (BPR) were being discussed. 

BPR governs the authorisation of biocidal products and active substances, and the negotiations “may affect product authorisation, labelling, supply chains and operational practices of organisations across the biocides sector”, according to Defra who are leading the negotiations. 

BPCA has already responded to a call for information from Defra, and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has also published a survey on the costs of regulation. 

The agreement is expected to come into effect mid-2027, and the government says that it should make trade “easier, cheaper, and more predictable”.

The King’s Speech 

The King formally re-opened Parliament on the 13th May, giving a speech (written by the Government), on the legislative priorities for the next Parliamentary term. Included were: 

• A European Partnership Bill to strengthen EU ties and support treaty implementation
• A proposed Small Business Protections (Late Payments) Bill imposing maximum payment terms of 60 days and mandatory interest on late payments 
• A Regulating for Growth Bill to give regulators such as Natural England and the HSE a legal duty to prioritise growth in their decision making 
• A commitment to tackle youth unemployment 
• An expanded duty for public bodies to consider Armed Forces Covenant in policymaking, as part of the Armed Forces Bill.

Other news

• In response to uncertainty and high fuel costs with the war in the Middle East, we wrote to the Trade and Energy Ministers to ensure the needs of the sector were considered in their contingency plans 
• We published two manifestos ahead of the May elections in Scotland and Wales
• We ran a survey to seek your views on mole traps. The survey has concluded and we will be using your feedback to inform the
• Government’s review of mole traps which was pledged as part of their Animal Welfare Strategy 
• We set up an MPs visit with Maya Ellis MP on the Housing Committee with local member LES pest management (pictured above)
• BPCA responded to a consultation launched by Northern Ireland’s Department of Justice, arguing against a proposed increase in firearms licensing fees by 153%.