Ornis Committee 'rubber-stamping' spring hunting

The government this month published two legal notices on spring hunting, each published one day before the Ornis Committee meeting.

“In both cases the Ornis Committee was not aware that these two legal notices were on the table. The legislation was then presented to the Ornis Committee as a fait accompli,” BirdLife said.

“This sidestepping of the Ornis Committee clearly showed that government does not wish to consult its advisory body on this matter.”

The meeting last Tuesday discussed spring hunting legislation, however since all decisions had already been taken BirdLife said the meeting “was pointless”.

The BirdLife International/FACE (Federation for European Hunters) statement quoted by the government affirms both parties' respect of the ECJ ruling.

“The statement and BirdLife Malta's not attending the Ornis Committee meeting are therefore clearly unrelated,” BirdLife said.

BirdLife said the ECJ ruling obliges Malta to ensure that the populations of the species concerned are maintained at a satisfactory level, and that this is a pre-requisite to any derogation.

“The government needs to take into account the European Conservation Status prior to opening a spring hunting season, as is also expected by the Commission,” said BirdLife president Paul Debono.

According to the EC’s guide to sustainable hunting under the Birds Directive, derogations should not be granted for species with an unfavourable conservation status which are declining within the EU, unless it can be clearly demonstrated that the derogations is “beneficial to the conservation status of the species”.

“The Ornis Committee is currently being used for nothing more than rubberstamping Government’s decision to re-open the spring hunting season,” Debono said.