I often encounter a lot of ignorance about just who CAN shoot, and what, in the UK. This is not the fault of the person asking, but a reflection of the fact that there are many spurious 'myths and legends' about shooting sports here. This is an excerpt from a paper produced for the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) - an apolitical organisation, broad details of which can be found here - https://basc.org.uk/

This organisation in no way detracts from the efforts of the UK NRA and NRSA - the National Rifle Association and National Smallbore Rifle Association respectively - two more apolitical organisations each with tens of thousands of members. Many people are members of both, as they shoot in both areas of the shooting disciplines.

Heading - New research shows shooting generates £2 billion for the economy, boosts conservation and provides jobs.

Shooting is worth £2 billion a year (Gross Value Added*) to the UK economy and provides significant conservation benefits according to the results of independent research released today by leading shooting and countryside organisations.

The figures are outlined in a new report – The Value of Shooting – conducted by Cambridge-based Public and Corporate Economic Consultants (PACEC). It is the most comprehensive research into the economic, environmental and social contributions of shooting ever undertaken in the UK.

The Value of Shooting reveals that shooting supports the equivalent of 74,000 full-time jobs. People who shoot spend £2.5 billion each year on goods and services, bringing income into rural areas, particularly in the low-season for tourism. The research shows that an established shoot generates local economic benefits for businesses in a radius of up to fifteen miles.

The figures show that the amount spent on shooting (£2.5bn) equals almost 10% of the total amount spent on outdoor recreation in a year, which has been measured at £27bn by the Sport and Recreation Alliance**.

Shooting is involved in the management of two-thirds of the UK’s rural land area. Almost two million hectares are actively managed for conservation as a result of shooting. Nearly £250 million a year is spent on conservation and habitat management which benefits a wide range of wildlife. People who shoot put in 3.9 million work days on conservation every year – the equivalent of 16,000 full-time conservation jobs.

At least 600,000 people in the UK shoot live quarry, clay pigeons or targets and existing industry information shows that there are at least 1.6 million individuals who shoot live quarry with an airgun.

I watch County Deer Stalking YT channel (among others) and see hunting is alive and well there. Nothing but respect from me for the hoops y'all have to go through and still don't give up.

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Originally posted by Opus Dei:I watch County Deer Stalking YT channel (among others) and see hunting is alive and well there. Nothing but respect from me for the hoops y'all have to go through and still don't give up.

Thank you, Sir, for that.

Grouse shoots are popular and add a lot of money to local economies. If I won the lottery, I would definitely make that one of my pastimes. Unfortunately, there's relentless pressure to ban hunting of any kind in the UK.