The UK has voted to leave the European Union.
The RSPB has always believed that, because nature transcends national boundaries, it needs cross-border co-operation to protect it and a common set of international standards that enable it to thrive.
That is why, now the UK has decided to leave the EU, the RSPB believes the UK must continue to act internationally, and look to forge comprehensive international agreements for nature conservation and the environment.
But we also need action at home.
David Tipling's fabulous image of two turtle doves - our fast declining migratory bird
There are millions of people in the UK who love nature – just think about the viewing figures of BBC Springwatch. We need clean air and water, and we want an attractive countryside rich in wildlife.
It is essential that we do not lose the current, hard won, level of legal protection. Given the current state of nature, we should be looking to improve the implementation of existing legal protection and, where necessary, to increase it.
It will now be down to the governments in Westminster, Edinburgh, Belfast and Cardiff to make this happen.
As the new constitutional settlement is negotiated over the coming months (and years?), the RSPB will continue to be a voice for nature, raising the importance of environmental issues that has an impact on people, wildlife and the economy. We will provide a constructive challenge to all governments across the UK where necessary, and give credit where it is due; just as we always have done.
And, of course, trans-national challenges such as protecting our migrating birds, tackling climate change remain, which is why we shall work internationally, as we have done so for over a hundred years, and will continue to act across Europe with our Birdlife International partners to tackle the many challenges facing nature.
In short, we shall continue to do whatever nature needs.
Finally, I hope that all those that have invested so much in this campaign take time to recover. We need our leaders to be at their best as they make sense of this result and to rise to meet the challenges we and nature face. Given that contact with nature is good for the soul, I recommend a visit to a local nature reserve this weekend.
Ben Hall's image of RSPB Arne at dawn (rspb-images.com)
Nightjar (whoever you are),
What a strange (3rd) Comment. I suggest you go back and re-read the 2nd paragraph of my original Comment again - you appear to have missed the point. The key words are '...the British electorate...' and '....on what they perceive...'
Whether the evidence touted around in the Referendum debate is dangerous to the whole human race is an interesting observation. I suppose if you accept David Cameron’s fears over a British EU exit leading to some sort of war or nuclear Armageddon then it might just be conceivable. However, on balance, I view EU exit as significantly less of an existential threat to the human race than say an asteroid collision, super volcano eruptions or some unexpected major solar phenomenon.
For what it is worth, I agree with you that is better for more of us to know more - and be able to judge the evidence for ourselves and that sparrowhawks starve when there is too little prey to support them.
Interesting that you are so confident about what farmers will soon say – perhaps as confident as others were of a REMAIN referendum result? And quite why you would want to quote me back at farmers is also a mystery, and yes I do know a couple, and am perfectly capable of telling them my views myself.
What I am advocating is that our Society seizes the opportunity to help fashion the national CFP and CAP replacements through positive, listening and constructive engagement with fishermen, farmers and other land managers (and their representative bodies if they have them) so that the gulf between ‘lay’ practitioners’ and ‘experts’’ respective views is narrowed (if one exists) and that a common understanding is fostered (if one needs to be). I gave the example of the Scottish Government-endorsed Understanding Predation Project as a useful model for such dialogue. Collaborators in that project included civil servants, NGOs, land managers and other interested stakeholders – all facilitated by academics from both natural and social science disciplines - with welcome and valuable RSPB Scotland participation throughout.