The Moorland Association was approached by BBC North East and Cumbria, ahead of an article which will contain accusations from RSPB that hen harriers are subject to ‘intense persecution associated with grouse shooting in the uplands’.
The Moorland Association has issued the following statement in response.
Andrew Gilruth, the chief executive of the Moorland Association, said: “We can only assume the RSPB continue to make sweeping generalisations about hen harrier persecution on grouse moors because it aids their fundraising efforts. It’s disappointing that the charity fails to acknowledge the extraordinary success of Defra’s hen harrier recovery plan, which has increased the English population to a 200-year high in just five years, thanks largely to gamekeepers. Driven grouse moors have more harrier nests than all the RSPB nature reserves combined and Geltsdale are beneficiaries of this. If the charity has evidence of illegal activity it should do what everyone else does, take it to the police, rather than trying to distort opinion through a targeted media campaign that does nothing constructive for conservation in this country and goes against all internationally recognised IUCN guidelines.”