KEY MESSAGES

• The Scottish government led the way in declaring a climate and nature emergency, committing to ambitious goals to “restore and regenerate biodiversity across the country by 2045.” However, no attempt to reverse biodiversity loss can be taken seriously if it rules out reintroducing missing native species.
• There is plenty of suitable habitat and natural prey to allow lynx to thrive in Scotland.
• Popular support for the lynx’s return is surging with a recent opinion poll showing 61% of Scots now support a lynx reintroduction and only 13% remain opposed.
• Scotland remains one of only a handful of countries still lacking any large terrestrial predators. By refusing to countenance the return of animal that is relatively easy to live with, we appear intolerant and hypocritical, and are outsourcing our responsibility to address the climate and nature crises.
• Dismissing the return of lynx on the basis that it may involve some costs fails to account for the costs of living without lynx, either in terms of missed economic benefits, their vital role in restoring natural processes, or the wider societal benefits that healthy ecosystems provide.
• Other countries manage to balance coexisting with wildlife with support for the agricultural sector. It’s time we showed a similar commitment to nature restoration.

KEY ASKS

• Refrain from further damaging suggestions that nature recovery must be pitched against food production. In truth, we need both.
• Endorse a continued public discussion to further explore how the lynx’s return could be managed in a way that maximises the opportunities for Scotland, while minimising the costs.