Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of making employers of gamekeepers vicariously liable for their actions.

The introduction of new regulation, such as vicarious liability, requires evidence that it will be effective. Vicarious liability occurs where one person can be held liable for the actions of another person. With regards to gamekeepers, this could mean a manager or employer would be held criminally liable for an unlawful act perpetrated by their gamekeeper, for example the unlawful killing of birds of prey. Vicarious liability for such acts has been introduced in Scotland but so far there is no compelling evidence to show that its introduction has had a significant deterrent effect on those who persecute wildlife.

We will continue to monitor the situation in Scotland to consider whether vicarious liability is a necessary and proportionate approach in tackling crime in England.