According to a report in the Guardian 1,875 non-native species were counted in Great Britain in 2012 – a figure increasing by 10 species a year, it seems. 282 of these have become invasive.
The parliamentary report, Invasive Non-native Species, says there needs to be better prevention, surveillance, monitoring and eradication measures, and new powers to kill off such species before they become established. It seems that existing laws do prohibit the release of non-native animals and plants into the wild, but have never been used to prosecute anyone, and MPs warned that these are unlikely to provide the level of protection needed.
Sadly, we may have to wait until there's a UKIP minister at Defra before there is decisive action ...
Respond