The following direction has been given to Natural England with regard to any decision to grant, or not, a licence under section 16(4)(c) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (WCA), as amended, permitting the release of the European Lynx (Lynx lynx) into the wild in England.

The granting of licences under section 16(4) is one of Natural England’s functions, authorised under section 78 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act 2006. This function is subject to an agreement with Natural England under section 78 of the NERC Act.

As this is the first time that a formerly native large predatory mammal has been considered for re-introduction into the wild in England and in light of the potential impacts of such a release and the high profile nature of any application, the Secretary of State, in accordance with that Act, will now make the decision, having regard to advice provided by Natural England.

In accordance with section 16 of that Act the Secretary of State is required to direct Natural England on the exercise of this function and for the direction to be published.

The department’s policy statement on licensing the releasing of plants and animals into the wild requests Natural England to regulate such releases for a series of purposes, which includes preventing the risk of adverse socio-economic impacts arising from the introduction of species into the wild. This policy still applies insofar as it is applicable to the release of European Lynx into the wild in England.