LIVINGSTONE PIGEON CULL CRUSADE COSTS LONDONERS ALMOST £28 A BIRD

12.01.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 6th Oct 2004

New figures revealed today by London Assembly environment spokesman, Mike Tuffrey, show that over the last year Ken Livingstone spent almost £28 per pigeon to keep them away from Trafalgar Square.

The figures, exposed in a Mayoral written answer, show that in the financial year 2003/04, £105,000 was spent on a hawk to chase 4,900 pigeons from the Square. A further £30,000 was spent in undertaking a scientific study to make sure that the pigeons were not being harmed.

Mike Tuffrey said:-

"While there is no disputing that the pigeons in Trafalgar Square were both a nuisance and a health hazard, serious questions must be asked about how on earth a hawk costs £105,000 to hire for a year.

"It is a nonsense that so much cash is paid for the use of a bird. For that sort of money perhaps Mr Livingstone could have employed four people for eight hours a day to run around chasing the birds off the square!

"Mr Livingstone's failure to get real value for money means that Londoners will continue to suffer from huge increases in their Council Tax bills."

ENDS

Notes to editors

According to the written answer below, £105,000 was spent in 2003/04 on Trafalgar Square hawk pigeon control. A £30,000 feasibility study was also carried out on the removal of around 4,900 birds. This equates to around £27.55 being spent to remove each bird from the square

Pigeons

Question No: 1220 / 2004

Mike Tuffrey

How successful have you been in reducing the number of pigeons in Trafalgar Square and Parliament Square? Please provide details of any assessments carried out. How much has been spent to date on achieving this goal?

The pigeon reduction programme on Trafalgar Square has been extremely successful. Pigeon numbers have been reduced from up to 5000 in 2000 to as low as 100 in 2004.

Currently it is estimated that there are approximately 150 resident birds on the Square however the numbers rise and fall subject to conditions. There are extensive monitoring records maintained by the GLA based on periodic observations undertaken by the biodiversity team.

The success of the project has also attracted significant international interest with enquires coming from around the world.

In 2003/2004 financial year £106,000 was spent on pigeon control through the use of a hawk on the Square. This has been reduced to £25,000 in 2004/05 financial year. In association with the Save the Trafalgar Square Pigeon Group a scientific study was undertaken to determine the impact of the project on the welfare of the birds, the study concluded that the birds were not being harmed. The cost of the study was £30,000. A controlled feed reduction programme to ensure the welfare of the birds was introduced in conjunction with Save the Trafalgar Square Pigeon Group. This controlled feeding programme will cost approximately £4,000 in the current financial year.

The investment in this activity has enabled Trafalgar Square to host a wide range of activities and events that would not have previously been possible including the Summer in the Square programme attracting thousands of visitors. Trafalgar Square is now also being extensively used for filming, photo shoots and media, the result has been an increase in bookings revenue by over 50% in the current financial year As a result of the programme major cleaning many of the assets on the Square have been not been required and have been undertaken on an operational level. It is also anticipated that such a major clean costing in excess of £250,000 will take place at much less frequent intervals.