Ministers face legal challenge over rules for shooting wild birds

Exclusive: Activists challenge updated shooting licences, which allow wild birds in England to be shot to protect game birds

The government is facing a legal challenge over its newly updated shooting licences for England, which classify game birds as livestock and so allow wild birds to be shot to protect them.

Campaigners have said the licences give an unfair advantage to gamekeepers, as they allow the birds to be defined as livestock when shooters want to kill other birds to protect them, but are otherwise considered wild birds so the estate owners are not liable for any damage the game birds cause.