Trust welcomes Government's National Deer Management Plan

We react to the Scottish Government’s commitment to a National Deer Management Plan and what this means for the future of wild places

A coalition of landowning organisations and rural workers, including the John Muir Trust, Community Land Scotland, the Scottish Tenant Farmers Association, Trees for Life and the RSPB, are hailing the Scottish Government’s groundbreaking commitment to a National Deer Management Plan.

The plan aims to reduce deer densities across the country and encourage natural regeneration at a landscape scale with the Government stepping in to fund the national effort. 

We at the Trust, along with fellow landowning charity Trees for Life, provided a briefing showing that this approach would allow the Government to triple its woodland creation targets while saving around £900 million in taxpayer money.

The announcement comes at the same time as the Scottish Parliament is scrutinising the Natural Environment Bill. The Bill includes provisions to enable government agency NatureScot to compel reticent landowners to manage deer numbers for nature restoration.

Our Director of Policy, David Fleetwood, said: “We are delighted with this announcement. Our proposed National Deer Management Plan brings together environmental charities, private, public and community landowners alongside land workers so we can deliver a restored natural environment for the whole of Scotland.

“The First Minister has been clear that he is serious about the nature and climate crisis. We came to him with this practical solution, and we look forward to helping him deliver the plan in partnership with landowners and land workers going forward.”

Photo shows trees regenerating at Dùn Coillich, one of our Heart of Scotland Forest partners near the land in our care at Schiehallion.