Rural Payments and Services

Protecting and enhancing nature and improving animal welfare are the key aims of proposed changes to deer management legislation.

It is estimated there are around 1 million wild deer in Scotland, up from around 500,000 in 1990. This extremely high population means that management is required to protect and restore important habitats, particularly woodland and peatland.

In 2023 the Scottish Parliament passed legislative changes to give authorised land managers more powers to help control the deer population including extending the period for culling male deer; allowing the use of non-lead ammunition and permitting the use of ‘night sights’ to cull deer at night.

Building on this, the Scottish Government is now seeking views on a range of further proposals to improve the current system of deer management. These include:

• granting NatureScot additional powers to facilitate deer management for the purposes of enhancing the natural environment

• changes to improve the welfare of wild deer when undertaking deer management

• removing barriers for venison dealers to help expand their markets and get more venison into the food supply chain

Background

Managing deer numbers for nature and climate - full news article (gov.scot)

Managing deer for climate and nature: consultation (gov.scot)