Poaching penalty points for hunters has major loophole: three separate licences

Hunters can get up to three different licences all incurring separate, 12-point penalties before they are banned for poaching.

The loophole could mean hunters who incur penalty points on one licence, can still carry out similar activities such as trapping or hunting at sea, where each activity is carried out on a separate licence.

But far from a ‘driving licence’ type suspension for those that tot up 12 penalty points, hunters on three licences technically have leeway for up to 36 penalty points.

“Unlike the drivers licence, which is one licence for various vehicles, hunters could be docked 12 points for hunting on land but this will not stop them from hunting at sea, if they also have that licence,” said BirdLife CEO Mark Sultana.

“The intentions might be good here, but this is again a loophole. Government is either naive, or it is playing a game yet again. This does not send the message that hunters must respect the law. At the end of the day, enforcement is what stop poaching. And this points system should not stop the course of European Commission infringements on hunting and trapping,” Sultana said.

The points system for hunting and trapping will be introduced with legal changes that will simplify licence suspension rules for poachers found guilty of flaunting the law. 

The legal amendments will see various offences listed in the Conservation of Wild Birds and Conservation of Wild Rabbits regulations subject to fixed-point deductions, ranging from two to four per offence.

Four points will be knocked off for any hunter or trapper caught with illegal electronic equipment.

Hunters and trappers who accumulate 12 or more points over a two-year period will have their licence suspended for one year. Anyone suspended will be barred from applying for any other related licences during their suspension period. 

But licence suspensions will from now on only be applicable to the offence committed, meaning a poacher caught shooting a protected bird will no longer have their trapping licence suspended too.

Licence-holders will be allowed to appeal decisions before the Administrative Review Tribunal. While the appeal is pending, the two-year period for points deductions will remain in force, and points accumulated by law-breaking hunters will continue to apply. Points will only be deducted from the total if an appeal is decided in the licence holder’s favour. 

The legal amendments will revise the classification of a number of poaching offences, to make them subject to administrative fines rather than court proceedings. The ministry did not provide a list of which offences are being reclassified. 

Administrative fines will not undergo any changes.