Written question asked by James Gray (Conservative) on Wednesday, 13 November 2002, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 20 November 2002. It was answered by Alun Michael (Labour) on Wednesday, 20 November 2002 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

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Dept for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions her Department has held with the authors of the Joint Universities Study on Deer Hunting (The physiological response of red deer (Cervus elaphus) to prolonged exercise undertaken during hunting, 1998) about the physiological effects on deer which (a) escape after being hunted and (b) are hunted and shot; what estimates her Department has made of the size of the annual cull of (a) foxes, (b) hares, (c) deer and (d) mink; what plans she has to establish a national strategy for the management of (a) foxes, (b) hares, (c) deer and (d) mink; what studies her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the the economic damage caused by the deer population to root crops and grass by grazing, trampling and lying; and what assessment her Department has made of trends over the last 10 years; what studies her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the economic cost of agricultural damage caused by (i) foxes, (ii) hares, (iii) deer and (iv) mink; what studies her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the (i) fox, (ii) hare, (iii) mink and (iv) deer (1) red, (2) fallow, (3) roe, (4) sika, (5) muntjac and (6) Chinese water deer populations in England and Wales; and what estimates have been made of current populations compared to those 10 years ago; what studies her Department has commissioned into the agricultural damage caused by badgers; what studies her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into the predation of (i) water voles and (ii) fish by mink; what studies her Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated into negative physiological effects on (i) foxes, (ii) hares and (iii) mink which escape after being hunted. - Inc refs to various studies, figures and info in Library.

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Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

394 c161-4W;394 c159-62W; 80834;80836;80835;80829;80832;80828;80833;80831;80837

Session

2002-03

Subjects

Animal welfare Crops Agriculture Costs Badgers Deer Damage Hare coursing Field sports Hunting Foxes Mink Pest control Research Pests

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk