Fowl Play

Among the core values of British Conservatism are, of course, libertarianism for nice people alongside law and order for the plebs. Accordingly, while the vulgar are obliged by law to refrain from poisoning landscape and wildlife with lead, no such strictures apply to the worthy. A "voluntary ban" comprising a pretty-please or two addressed to the shooting fraternity, has thus far resulted in a marginal increase in the use of lead shot to kill pheasants, from 99.4% to 99.5%. Since the pellets are highly toxic and frequently ingested by wildfowl and their predators, a good day's sport can result in a substantial bag of local wildlife. Requests to use steel shot instead drew complaints that it is unsuitable for Great-Grandfather's venerable blunderbuss and would necessitate the purchase of new guns, thus bringing the horrors of firearm poverty into the mansions of the deserving. Those concerned with British fair play also point out that steel shot requires an excessive degree of accuracy in firing and thereby gives the game birds too much of a sporting chance.