Overview
- Following a City Hall debate, councillors asked the cabinet to examine fixed penalty notices for persistent feeding at the Lutyens War Memorial Gardens after prior warnings.
- Market traders and some shoppers report nuisance and health concerns, with fouling and stonework damage cited as pressures linked to planned market upgrades.
- Reports from Europe say managed contraception cut pigeon numbers by 66% in Brussels between 2019 and 2023 and by about 30% in a two‑year Malta trial.
- Campaigners and a cited expert question whether contraception is licensed in the UK and warn of risks to non‑target species or wider environmental spread; a local petition has topped 3,500 signatures and protests have continued.
- A previous four‑week hawk deterrent pilot using a bird named Hazel aimed to scare rather than kill pigeons, though supporters increased feeding in response.