Once more Reporting Scotland headline a story not being reported at all on their own website pages.
Such actions are an obvious sign of a direct approach from Scottish Government critics seeking an uncritical platform.
Today we hear that ‘nearly’ 400 business have got together to oppose the ‘disastrous’ plans to licence grouse shooting.
Many will be surprised that a business already associated in our minds with the super-rich is not licensed. Is that so shooters can just leave quickly after shooting local peasants?
The Herald and Aberdeen Live also have the story so share the source no doubt.
Leaving aside any disgust at the thought of large humans blasting away at wee birds, what are the facts here?
Between 12% and 18% of Scotland’s total land area is currently reserved for grouse moors. Despite this, the economics of such activity has been shown to be significantly worse than any other reasonably conceivable economic activity.
Of all the possible uses of this land, grouse shooting is not only the least moral, it is by far the least economically effective. In fact, almost any other use will create more value and more jobs per hectare.
https://www.birdguides.com/news/grouse-shooting-is-the-least-effective-use-of-scottish-land/
Back in the day, Common Weal did things like this. In 2019, with the Revive Coalition they produced: Back to Life: Visions for Alternative Futures for Scotland’s Grouse Moors. It settled the debate once and for all
Common Weal presented some devastating numbers for the supporters of shooting. Neatly summarised for us by Bird Guides:
A new report has shown that, from an economic perspective, grouse shooting is the most ineffective use of Scottish land. The study, published on the final day of the Scottish grouse season, shows the bloodsport produced an annual gross value added (GVA) of just £30 per hectare.
The report – Back to Life – scrutinises a variety of other possible land uses, including agriculture, biomass, housing and solar power, and found all of them to produce far greater value. If the land was used for other purposes, horticulture would return the greatest GVA at £12,412/ha, followed by housing (£11,950) and solar power (£10,952).
Horticulture, which currently uses 0.26 per cent of Scotland’s land area, would create 7,370 jobs, generate £261 million for the economy and would need 3 ha to create one job. In stark contrast, the report said grouse shooting, on the current land use area of 1.5 million ha, created 2,640 jobs, had an annual economic impact of £32m and required 330 ha to create.
https://www.birdguides.com/news/grouse-shooting-is-the-least-effective-use-of-scottish-land/
So, headline message
Horticulture 400 times more profitable than grouse shooting!
What is the public view?
In November 2020, we had this:
In a typically establishment-oriented report, BBC Scotland prioritises the views of the folk who just love to shoot fat wee birds that never fight back and that don’t even fly too well.
Then the Scottish Government and the Scottish Wildlife Trust get a word in and Fergal Keane offers us what BBC Scotland love to call ‘analysis.’ He too starts of from the land-owners’ perspective.
It’s quite a long report but there are two things missing.
First, why is there no mention of the fact that 15% of all the land in Scotland, 15% of everything we have, is used by toffs to shoot fat wee birds that never fight back and that don’t even fly too well?
Is nothing more important those who own most of Scotland’s land than shooting fat wee birds that never fight back and that don’t even fly too well?
Second, as a taxpayer-funded organisation, might the BBC have searched for public opinion on shooting fat wee birds that never fight back and that don’t even fly too well?
For Magazine Reporting Scotland, did Fergal get out in the streets and ask 3 people?
There is some evidence, published on the 2nd November 2020, if I might be so bold:
New figures published by the League Against Cruel Sports Scotland show seven in ten people (71%) are opposed to grouse shooting in Scotland with only 12% in favour of the blood sport, views which are shared by those in both urban and rural locations.
Is Fergal too tired after trudging over those moors fearlessly seeking the truth from some guy that just love shooting fat wee birds that never fight back and that don’t even fly too well?
Sources:
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
I know who I would shoot.
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So , 400 ”businesses” have come out in support of the Toffs’ right to shoot grouse without a license ?
How many of these ”businesses” have links to the estate owners or are tenants of said owners or are estate owners under different names ?
We are regularly told by those with much to lose that without these shooting estates The Highland economy would collapse . Aye , right !
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At least in the days of rich landowners the class distinctions were obvious, rebranding as “rural businesses” has been a clever ploy to imply a wider threat to livelihoods, without changing a thing.
I have a modicum of sympathy for the hunting community having been a shooter myself, but none are invited to such “rural businesses” anyway, which still operate as the exclusive clubs they always have been – They invite those who couldn’t even hit a barn door standing up against it, but are the “right people” and connected.
– I recall from my youth on a particularly drookit pheasant drive, one plummy arsehole winged the gamekeeper’s dog – At least the laird had the good sense to immediately disarm him and have him escorted him back to base before the gamey gave a live demonstration in battlefield surgery…
Most of UK and Ireland’s hunting community go to such as Scandinavia to pursue their ‘hobby’, which is a deal more more complex and educational than merely destroying anything that moves – These places have an entirely different model of land ownership, and hunting has a long tradition, it’s not just a distraction for the rich and connected a la UK….
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John, can I just say you get better and better? Keep up the good work!
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It should be banned , the cowards way is to license it , they will have no proper control over licenses and it will be the business not the business owners or the participants that they plan to license , useless , spineless government.
Scottish people are crammed into 5 cities whilst as you say a fifth of our land is cordoned off for tourists to shoot animals ,it’s criminal no other country in the world would allow it.
This is just like the land ownership problem in Scotland where Scottish government do not even know who owns a lot of the land and when a Scottish minister tried to investigate he was taken to court by foreign investors who threatened his livelihood to the point where he gave up.
Weak Scottish government pretending to take action but it’s action that changes nothing.
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Prof, it is essential to the defence of the Union that we have an armed loyal group ready to shoot the revolting peasants in the event of insurrection. That is why grouse shooting must be protected. Every gamekeeper I have known with one exception has been a diehard Tory ready to defend the his masters land and shooting rights at all costs.
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