Borehamwood parakeet campaigners: 'It is completely unnecessary'
Thursday, June 6, 2013 at 12:46 
Dr Christine BrockCampaigners are determined not to give up the fight to save a rare breed of bird.
Christine Brock, of Glenhaven Avenue, and Simon Richardson, of Furzehill Road, were dismayed to learn seven adult parakeets were trapped in Borehamwood last year.
Monk parakeets are subject to an eradication programme by environmental body Defra – but the pair believe they should be allowed to fly free in the area.
The new information, released in an FoI request, show that of the seven birds trapped in the area last year, one subsequently died in captivity.
Defra began shooting the birds in Borehamwood in 2011 – but months later Hertsmere Borough Council withdrew permission for this to happen on its land.
Figures also show over the last year, the body spent a total of £58,000 on their parakeet eradication programme across the country.
Dr Brock said: “They have been around for 20 years and we find the whole situation really outrageous.
“They want to get rid of them because they say they will breed and decimate crops but this is not going to happen. There is no agricultural land in the area.
“It is completely unnecessary and makes me really angry.”
The birds were first seen in Borehamwood in 1993 and it is believed they were released from a house after a burglary in the area.
But some of the birds now live in residential gardens where they are cared for and so remain safe.
But Dr Richardson added: “However we still have grave concerns DEFRA may have acted illegally in its zealous commitment to eradicating the parakeets.
“It is shocking that Defra is wasting taxpayers’ money on such a pointless and futile exercise.
“It is not only causing the deaths of these wonderful and intelligent parakeets, it is also harming other wild birds as they get caught in the traps, resulting in severe stress.”
A statement from Defra said: “Control work is being carried out as part of an initiative to counter the potential threat parakeets pose to critical national infrastructure, crops and native British wildlife.
“This invasive species has caused significant damage in other countries through nesting and feeding and we are taking action now to prevent this happening in the UK.”