BPCA news archive

17 December 2020

Defra releases final 2021 General Licences for bird control

Defra has published its final versions of the new General Licences for the lethal control of wild birds, which will take effect on 1 January 2021.

defra-releases-final-bird-licences

Last month Defra shared the new general licences to give pest professionals as much time as possible to become familiar with them before they take effect on 1 January 2021.

The final new general licences, which includes the condition for European protected sites, were published in full on 16 December 2020.

The licences published are:

  • Conservation licence GL40 (currently GL34) Read >
  • Public health and safety licence GL41 (currently GL35) Read >
  • Serious damage licence GL42 (currently GL36) Read >

Pest professionals will typically be using the GL41 for public health and safety which covers:

Species (scientific name) for which action is to be taken

Slips and falls

Spread of human disease

Issues with birds nesting

Canada goose
(Branta Canadensis)

Yes

Yes

Yes

Feral pigeon
(Columba livia)

Yes

Yes

Yes

Jackdaw
(Corvus monedula)

No

No

Yes

Monk parakeet
(Myiopsitta monachus)

No

No

Yes

The revised trapping conditions for the new general licences are in the updated GL33 document, here.

A Defra spokesperson told BPCA, "The new licences are the result of nearly 18 months of work, including analysis of over 4000 responses to our user survey, and review of the scientific evidence.

"Many of you have actively participated in meetings and workshops, this has been a valuable part of the process, thank you."

Questions or concerns about new licences?

If you're a BPCA member and have any concerns or questions about licences, please contact us.

technical@bpca.org.uk

Source: Online