It would allow falconers to kill or take mountain hares under licence from NatureScot between 1 October and the end of February. Before protection, an estimated 26,000 mountain hares were killed annually on Scotland’s moorlands. The 2020 legislative change ended the general right to kill mountain hares, though NatureScot retains powers to issue licences where there is evidence of agricultural or conservation need. “We rightly fear that the provision of licenses to allow falconers to kill mountain hares will provide a smokescreen for illegal killing. “MSPs must uphold the hard-won protections for mountain hares that were rightfully put in place in 2020 and ensure mountain hares are not once again subjected to widespread killings.”