📰 Gamekeepers praised after joint effort halts Pentlands wildfire Teams of gamekeepers and farmers helped prevent a rapidly spreading wildfire in the Pentland Hills Regional Park, near Edinburgh, from engulfing hundreds of hectares of moorland last month, in a joint effort praised by landowners, the fire service and rural organisations. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/gameke… #Wildfire #Gamekeepers #Farmers #EmergencyServices #PentlandHills

📰 Highland feed trial delivers for partridge A feed trial for partridge in the Highlands has delivered measurable improvements in bird condition and flight performance, according to Aberdeenshire-based Spratt’s Game Foods, which plans to launch a new feed range on the back of the results. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/highla… #Highland #Feed #Trial #Partridge #Gamekeeping

🚨 Royal Kennel Club wants to hear from gundog breeders The RKC is urging small-scale dog breeders to take part in a short survey ahead of an expected Government consultation on breeder licensing later this year, which may include compulsory registration for currently unlicensed breeders. The survey targets those who have produced one or two litters per year, or less frequently, over the past two to three years. Holly Conway, RKC head of public affairs, said: "We know many responsible dog breeders from the gundog community will breed infrequently, in low volumes, and so we would appreciate your views to help shape our policy." 👉 Respond before the 16 June deadline at tinyurl.com/rkc-breeder-surv… Photo credit: Callum McInerney-Riley #gundogs #breeding #survey #kennelclub #licensing

📰 Farmland bird survey counts 275,000 birds across UK More than 275,000 birds were recorded across nearly 293,000 hectares of UK farmland in this year’s Big Farmland Bird Count, with red-listed species featuring prominently despite poor spring weather. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/farmla… #Farmland #Bird #Survey #Fieldfare #RedListed

📰 Beretta unveils Battle of Pavia tribute SO10 EELL Beretta has unveiled a commemorative SO10 EELL sidelock over-and-under shotgun to mark 500 years since the founding of the company, with the gun’s engraving depicting the Battle of Pavia, a 1525 clash that the manufacturer says may have involved barrels made by its founder. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/berett… #Beretta #SO10 #EELL #OverAndUnder #Sidelock

📰 MPs urged to ask hard questions about £30m nature fund The Moorland Association has challenged Parliament to find out how much of a new £30 million Government habitat fund will actually reach the ground. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/mps-ur… #Moorland #Habitat #Restoration #Government #Fund @MoorlandAssoc

📰 Shooting under fire – but does the RSPB’s argument stack up? The RSPB this week took its campaign against shooting to a national audience, using BBC television and radio to publicise its latest report, which claims 921 birds of prey were illegally killed across the UK between 2015 and 2024, more than half of them on land managed for gamebird shooting. Published on 27 May, the charity’s 'Patterns of Persecution' report presses for gamebird shooting to be licensed across the UK, citing figures that, according to critics, do not bear scrutiny, and proposing a remedy that, those same critics argue, would punish an entire industry for the actions of a few. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/rspb-s… #RaptorPersecution #RSPB #Report #Rural #Response

📰 Breaking: Northern Ireland’s Department of Justice has withdrawn its controversial consultation on proposed firearms licensing fee increases, just hours after BASC threatened legal action over the plans. The proposals would have seen some fees rise by more than 150%, prompting widespread backlash from shooting organisations, farmers and certificate holders. Justice Minister Naomi Long said: “Having reflected on the issues raised during the consultation process, I have decided to withdraw the current consultation on firearms licensing fees.” BASC’s NI director Tommy Mayne welcomed the move: “It is the right decision for the consultation to be withdrawn. BASC opposes any increase in fees without a full, independent, and transparent review of the necessary processes involved in firearms licensing.” More to follow.

📰 NI committee withholds support for Hunting with Dogs Bill The Northern Ireland Assembly’s Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Committee has reserved its endorsement of the Hunting with Dogs Bill until members have consulted within their parties, after a discussion dominated by the Bill’s potential impact on working gundogs. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/ni-com… #NorthernIreland #Dogs #Bill #RuralAffairs #Hunting

📰 Tributes pour in for “true legend” of the gundog world The gundog world is mourning the loss of Andy Cullen MBE, one of the UK’s most celebrated and respected working dog trainers, who died, aged 60, in May 2026 after a battle with cancer. Andy’s death has prompted an outpouring of grief and tributes from handlers, colleagues and industry partners across the country and beyond, with many describing him as a “true legend” and a master of his craft. 👉 Read more: shootinguk.co.uk/news/tribut… #AndyCullen #Tributes #DogTrainer #Gundog #Community

📰 Courts told to jail hare coursers A new guideline from the Sentencing Council acknowledges what those who work the land have long argued: that the offences associated with hare coursing and poaching are among the most destructive crimes inflicted on rural England and Wales, but courts have not been punishing them accordingly. From 1 June, that may change, as courts will be formally directed towards prison sentences for the most serious cases. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/courts… #Hare #Coursing #Sentencing #Prison #Poaching

🎥 Gamekeepers’ film tackles rural suicide The Gamekeepers Welfare Trust has premiered a documentary addressing suicide in rural communities, with families sharing first-hand accounts of loss in an effort to break the silence around mental health in the countryside. The film, titled 'In This Together', features testimonies from relatives not only of personal loss but of the consequences that ripple outwards: the loss of a home tied to employment, the rehoming of working dogs and the upheaval of leaving a rural way of life altogether. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/gwt-fi… If you or someone you know is struggling, the Samaritans are available around the clock on 116 123, free from any phone. #Gamekeepers #Welfare #Rural #Support #Film

📰 Firearms licensing fees to rise 3% from 4 June Firearms and shotgun certificate holders across England, Scotland and Wales will pay more to obtain or renew their licences from 4 June, following the publication of a Home Office circular setting out new fees. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/firear… #FirearmsLicensing #HomeOffice #Inflation #Fees #Rise

🏆 The £400,000 clay shoot: Eaton Hall aims for a British record The Derbyshire shooting ground is set to offer the largest prize pot in UK clay shooting history this June: £400,000, including a £180,000 bonus for anyone capable of shooting a perfect score. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/eaton-… #EatonHall #TopGun #Championship #PrizePot #LifeChanging

📰 Licensing failures mount in England and Wales The backlog of temporary firearms permits issued by police forces in England and Wales has continued to grow, with the latest quarterly figures from the National Police Chiefs’ Council showing little improvement on an already poor picture. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/licens… #FirearmsLicensing #NPCC #Police #Engand #Wales

📰 Election results: a new chapter for shooting? Rural voters have sent a clear message to politicians across Scotland and Wales, according to countryside organisations responding to the results of 7 May’s elections. “It’s becoming increasingly clear that parties can no longer take the countryside for granted,” said David Bean, Parliament and Government Relations Manager at the Countryside Alliance. “From attacks on shooting to the family farm tax, rural voters increasingly feel decisions are being imposed on them rather than developed with them. This has created fertile ground for anti-establishment parties, but the resulting fragmentation in the vote could make rural voices more influential nationally.” 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/devolv… #Election #Results #RuralVoices #Reaction #Countryside

📰 Vinnie’s Defender hits the market A Land Rover Defender 110 previously owned by Vinnie Jones is on the market at £150,000, offering collectors a rare chance to acquire one of the most recognisable custom Defenders of recent years. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/vinnie… #VinnieJones #LandRover #Defender #ForSale

Ted, the Patterdale terrier mix who became an unlikely star of Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing, has died aged 13. The dog, owned by the BBC show’s executive producer Lisa Clark, first appeared in series three in 2020 and went on to become a fixture on British riverbanks alongside hosts Bob Mortimer and Paul Whitehouse, stealing jammy dodgers, rifling through bait bags and charming viewers in equal measure. 👉 Read more: shootinguk.co.uk/news/gone-f… #Ted #GoneFishing #Mortimer #Whitehouse Photo: Gone Fishing / PA Wire

📰 Woodpigeon open season a ‘Trojan horse’, warns Mr Pigeon One of Britain’s most prolific woodpigeon shots has warned that proposals to introduce a formal open season for the species amount to a “massive Trojan horse”, potentially leaving shooters far more restricted than they are today. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/woodpi… #Woodpigeon #OpenSeason #Consultation #QuarryList #ShootingTimes

📰 Cull more greys or lose reds forever, Government told The Government will need to press ahead with lethal grey squirrel control despite public opposition if England’s red squirrels are to be saved from mainland extinction, the Countryside Alliance has said. 👉 Full story: shootinguk.co.uk/news/grey-s… #Squirrel #Conservation #RedSquirrel #CountrysideAlliance