Judge throws out wildlife body's challenge over bid to reintroduce lynx

Judge throws out wildlife body's challenge over bid to reintroduce lynx Lynx have not existed in the wild in the UK for more than 300 years - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in A bid to bring wild lynx back to a Northumberland forest has failed at the High Court, after a judge ruled that the species remains covered by dangerous animal legislation. Lynx UK Trust, which campaigns for the return of the lynx to the UK, had taken legal action against Natural England over its refusal to carry out a full assessment of a proposed release into Kielder Forest. The plan before the court involved three lynx, two females and a male, which the trust wanted released into the forest on a trial basis. The animals have not existed in the wild in the UK for more than 300 years. Reintroduction efforts have been driven by a desire to help biodiversity, including through the control of deer populations. The trust's original application, made in July 2017, sought the release of six lynx into the forest as part of a five-year trial. That proposal was refused by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) the following year. A revised plan followed in 2022, this time for a three-year trial involving three lynx brought from Sweden. Natural England refused that proposal too, later that year, on the grounds that such a release was prohibited by the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 (DWAA). Under that legislation, it is an offence to release certain animals into the wild, among them a number of mammals formerly native to the UK, including the lynx. Lawyers for Lynx UK Trust challenged the second refusal at the High Court. They argued that the animals could still be released because the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (WCA) continued to allow authorities to issue licences for the release of animals which are not “ordinarily resident” in the UK, despite the terms of the DWAA. At the hearing earlier this month, the trust's legal team also contended that the terms of the DWAA had been “impliedly repealed” by the terms of the WCA. Both Natural England and Defra opposed the claim. Ms Justice Obi dismissed it in a ruling on Friday. In a 16-page judgment, she said: “Properly construed, the DWAA continues to apply to lynx as a scheduled dangerous wild animal. “I am unable to accept either the claimant’s primary submission that the Act ceases to apply upon deliberate release pursuant to a licence under… the WCA, or its alternative submission that the relevant provisions have been impliedly repealed by the later enactment of the WCA.” The judge also addressed Natural England's decision not to undertake a full assessment, which the body had reached because it considered the release would be unlawful. She found that decision was “open to it” and “rational”. She said: “On Natural England's understanding of the law, the proposed release could not lawfully be implemented. “In those circumstances, it was entitled to conclude that determining the 2022 application would serve no useful purpose.” The ruling leaves the trust's Kielder Forest trial plan refused, and the lynx absent from the UK wild for a period that now exceeds three centuries. Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments