Legislation for Increased Penalties for Wildlife Crime

That the Parliament recognises that, while a dedicated, all-encompassing, natural heritage Bill based on the proposals in The Nature of Scotland consultation document would be the preferred option, recent incidents such as the poisoning of a sea eagle and a golden eagle in Ayrshire, poisoning of a golden eagle in Aberdeenshire and the theft of two full clutches of osprey eggs in Perthshire, demonstrate the increasing urgency of delivering legislation that brings the level of sanctions against wildlife criminals into line with those available in England and Wales within this session of the Parliament and before next year's breeding season, and considers that the Executive should (a) progress legislation on wildlife crime through amendments to the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill and (b) reiterate its firm commitment to, and give a timetable for, a Bill to enact the remaining proposals in The Nature of Scotland.