WILDLIFE Traps

Traps

The Glue Traps (Offences) Act received royal assent 28 April 2022 and will ban the use of glue traps (sticky boards used to capture rodents) by members of the public in the next two years. The legislation will make the use of glue traps a criminal offence, punishable by imprisonment or a fine, unless the user of the trap holds a glue trap licence, issued by the Secretary of State. The Glue Traps (Offences) Act 2022 is subject to a 2 year lead-in period whilst the licensing scheme is being created and rolled out, meaning the provisions in the Act have not yet come into force. The Secretary of State will determine when the different provisions of the Act will take effect.

Due to the availability and inexpensiveness of glue traps, they have become a commonly used method of pest control. There have been several reports about the inhumane nature of these traps, concerns have been raised about how long animals may remain alive and trapped to the glue trap after capture, how they may injure themselves in their desperation to get free and how the traps might not be sufficiently monitored. For further reading, you can find here a House of Commons Library paper on the Glue Traps (Offences) Bill. You can also listen to our podcast episode with our Wildlife Law Working Group Co-chair, Rob Epsin.

We are also concerned about the use of other types of traps and the lack of enforcement around legislation intended to protect animals who become trapped, either as the target or an unintended species. We are reviewing the legislation in this area and are aiming to complete our report later in the year.

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Glue Traps and the Case for Reform

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