ECJ orders France to ban glue-trap hunting of songbirds outright

Campaigners welcome ruling that tradition is no excuse' and practice is not selective and breaks EU rules

European judges have ordered France to outlaw the hunting of songbirds using glue sticks, a practice described by campaigners as barbaric and a threat to endangered species.

French hunters argued the method was traditional and justified exemption from an EU ban introduced in 1979.