WIREDGOV

The fight against wildlife has been stepped up with the appointment of the first ever poaching priority officer for England and Wales, Home Office Minister Alan Campbell announced today.

Former detective Gareth Cole will be dedicated to supporting the work of all English and Welsh police forces in tackling poaching as part of the government funded National Wildlife Crime Unit (new window) (NWCU) whose headquarters are in Scotland.

His role provides additional expertise for tackling serious crimes against wildlife, acting as a single point of contact in the coordination of investigation into poaching crimes in different police areas. He will be working closely with his colleagues in the Scottish poaching priority delivery group.
 
The Minister today met with Mr Cole at the unit’s base in North Berwick where he was given an update on their work and recent success in tackling wildlife crime. He was then taken to a nearby badger sett to hear about local efforts to tackle badger baiting.

Mr Cole’s role is being funded by the Environment Agency (new window), the British Association for Shooting Conservation (new window) (BASC) and the Deer Initiative through the Partnership for Action against Wildlife Crime (PAW) coalition.

Statement from the Home Office Minister

Alan Campbell said, 'I am pleased to announce the appointment of Gareth Cole as Engalnd and Wales’ first priority poaching officer. I’m sure, with his experience as a well respected police detective, he will help take forward the important fight against poaching. There has already been significant success in Scotland with their priority delivery group, and the appointment of this new officer should help us extend this success south of the border.

'We take the issue of wildlife crime seriously; it can have a devastating effect on our rural communities and the environment in general. That is why the Home Office, along with Defra, have committed to funding the National Wildlife Crime Unit by £300,000 each year up until April 2011.'

The reporting of poaching incidents in England and Wales has seen a significant rise. The NWCU has witnessed a 79 per cent increase in reports of hare coursing in the last year. There has also been a significant rise in reports of deer poaching.

The NWCU has six priority areas:

• Tackling badger baiting
• Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
• Bird of prey persecution including poisoning, egg theft, chick theft, taking form the wild and nest disturbance / destruction
• Poaching (deer and fish poaching and hare coursing)
• Protecting nesting bats
• Protecting freshwater pearl mussels

Statement from the poaching priority officer for the Wildlife Crime Unit

Mr Cole said, 'I’m delighted to be appointed to this new role within the National Crime Wildlife Unit. Poaching does impact on rural communities and the local biodiversity. By combining my policing experience and my love of the outdoors, I look forward to contributing to ensuring that the police response to this crime is enhanced. The challenge now is to work in partnership, primarily with police forces across England and Wales, to ensure best practice is shared and to tackle the effects of poaching in our communities.'

Statement from the Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Police, ACPO lead on wildlife and rural crime

Richard Crompton said, 'This unique joint venture between the Environment Agency, BASC and the Deer Initiative is yet another example of the strong partnership approach that exists in Wildlife Crime Enforcement.

'The appointment of Gareth Cole will significantly enhance forces’ ability to prevent or disrupt criminal acts whilst offering a highly regarded professional point of contact for our partners.

'I am confident that having this officer embedded within the unit will pay dividends in the gathering of evidence and intelligence on those suspected of wildlife crime offences, leading to robust enforcement and prosecution.'

Statement from the head of game and gamekeeping at BASC

Tom Blades said,'In many ways this appointment marks the turning of a corner regarding poaching in England and Wales. The British Association for Shooting and Conservation has long campaigned for a better coordinated approach to poaching. Gareth’s appointment, funded by the BASC, the Environment Agency and the Deer Initiative is a significant step forward.

'The partnership approach to funding this post is evidence of the seriousness of poaching. It shows the commitment of the shooting community and enforcement agencies to tackling poaching.

'The nature of poaching offences requires a partnership approach; this applies at a local enforcement level and a national policy level. The project officers’ role will promote and encourage these partnerships to ensure more effective enforcement across England and Wales.

Notes to editors

Gareth Cole is a former detective from Lancashire Police (new window). 

The Environment Agency (new window) is providing £10,000 for the role, with BASC and the Deer Initiative each providing £5,000. 

There is currently a network of Police Wildlife Crime Officers spread throughout the 43 forces in England and Wales, 8 forces in Scotland and PSNI, who provide the backbone to investigating wildlife and environmental crime. 

The  National Wildlife Crime Unit (new window) is a member of PAW - Partnership for Action against Wildlife Crime (new window). PAW membership encompasses a wide range of bodies with an interest in tackling wildlife crime including conservation, land management, shooting and law enforcement organisations.

The unit is part funded by a variety of agencies including the Home Office (new window) England and Wales, DEFRA (new window), Scottish Government (new window), ACPOS (new window), ACPO (new window) and the Northern Ireland Government (new window).

Chief Constable Richard Crompton is the ACPO representative and is committed to UK’s status as a leader in the prevention and investigation of wildlife crime issues.

The NWCU was established in October 2006 and is currently based at North Berwick Police Station in cooperation with Lothian & Borders Police.

The NWCU is a police led, stand alone, multi agency unit with the UK wide remit for wildlife crime.  The NWCU gathers intelligence on national wildlife crime and also provides analytical and investigative support to the police and UK Boarder Agency (new window). It is the conduit between all agencies, domestically and internationally, that have a legal obligation or interest in dealing with wildlife crime.

For further information please contact David Langton at the Home Office Press Office on 020 7035 3835.