By Basant El-Faramawy
A UK High Court judge has dismissed a legal challenge by the Lynx UK Trust seeking to force Natural England to assess a plan to reintroduce Eurasian lynx into Kielder Forest in Northumberland.
The trust had sought a judicial review after Natural England refused to evaluate a revised proposal for a three-year trial release of three lynx from Sweden, citing the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 which prohibits releasing certain mammals, including lynx, into the wild.
Legal arguments
The trust argued that the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 allowed authorities to licence releases of animals not “ordinarily resident” in the UK, and that the 1976 Act had been impliedly repealed by the later legislation.
Judgment
Ms Justice Obi ruled on Friday that the Dangerous Wild Animals Act continues to apply to lynx as a scheduled dangerous wild animal. She rejected both arguments, stating the 1976 Act does not cease to apply upon licensed release and has not been impliedly repealed.
The judge also found Natural England’s decision not to undertake a full assessment was rational, as the body considered the proposed release unlawful. The ruling leaves the trust’s Kielder Forest trial plan refused, and lynx absent from the UK wild for over 300 years.
