The importance of shooting and angling have been highlighted at a rural reception hosted by the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) and the Angling Trust at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool.
Gavin Shuker MP, the Shadow Minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, said it was important to work together. He said: “I’m really looking forward to the coming year and working alongside you; we must ensure that we don’t lose focus on what’s important – we must protect our rural economy and help to promote awareness of the benefits that shooting and fishing bring to it.”
BASC’s chief executive John Swift said: “Shooting sports are worth over £1.6 billion per annum – that’s a lot of jobs and we can play our part in rural development. At the moment, we have projects in Scotland and South West England that are promoting tourism within these areas and we are working alongside other stakeholders to tackle conservation issues. We, in the UK, have something really special in rural areas and we need to work together to protect this."
BASC and the Angling Trust will also be holding an event at the Conservative party conference.
ENDS