Written questions

Hares: Conservation

Commons · Question 120551 · Tabled 12 Mar 2026 · Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs · Official record

Answered 19 Mar 2026

Question

Asked by Jess Brown-Fuller

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of introducing a statutory close season for the brown hare during its breeding period on levels of conservation.

Answer

Answered by Mary Creagh, 19 Mar 2026

The Government considers the need for a close season for hares to be justified primarily on the grounds of animal welfare. It committed to consider how to bring forward and introduce a close season for hares in England in its Animal Welfare Strategy, publ...