I am very interested in being elected to the BASC Council as it presents a perfect opportunity for me to take on fresh challenges as I take a less active role in the business I own. I have been a member of BASC for many years and am actively involved in wildfowling. This role could provide me with the chance to use my experience and interest in a more productive way.

I began wildfowling at age 12, shooting geese with my father at Loch Leven. By age of 16, I was guiding other shooters on the Solway. In 1986, I joined Lytham and District Wildfowlers (LOWA) and Preston District Wildfowlers and soon became a member of the committee for LOWA, taking the role of a marsh manager.

This role entails assessing marsh conditions at the beginning and end of each season and managing the running of the marsh for the benefit of club members. I have helped plan and carry out projects to enrich our marsh for both shooting and conservation, most recently, the construction of new flashes to create more habitat and better conditions for sedentary and migratory birds.

As a marsh manager and now secretary, I have been involved in helping the club improve its land management and conservation activities. LOWA has some of the most important salt marshes in the country and I have been involved in the creation of the new Ribble Estuary National Nature Reserve which was a collaboration between LOWA as landowners, Natural England (NE) and the RSPB.

I have built up a good relationship with NE, working closely with them on projects to improve our marsh and encourage further diversity along the estuary. This includes the introduction of cattle and sheep to graze the marsh in summer which helps the diversity of the marsh, we are now seeing more wildfowl than ever before.

I have experience talking to our members, national bodies such as NE and RSPB, and other wildfowling clubs about all aspects of wildfowling and conservation. As a club, we were able to assist BASC with a visit to our marsh by NE chairman Tony Juniper and this was subsequently followed up by a visit from NE consenting officers. These visits gave them a ‘real life’ insight into the work they are doing.

I also rent shooting rights of over 4,500 acres from several farmers, giving me an understanding of local agriculture and the challenges we share with the farming community.

I feel the coming months and years will be challenging for country sports and shooting in particular. Finding ways to work with government bodies to promote shooting and its conservation benefits to the wider community is increasingly important. We need to be able to stress the sustainable conservation benefits that shooting brings to our countryside to ensure the continuation of the sport. If elected, I would be pleased to use my experience of wildfowling and conservation for the benefit of BASC and to help safeguard the future of shooting.