Questions have been raised over the legality of a bird cull at Caerphilly Castle.
The type of general licence used by Cadw contractors to cull the birds is a general one issued by Natural Resources Wales (NRW) under the Wildlife and Countryside Act.
In England, this type of licence is now no longer used after a legal challenge from campaign group Wild Justice, which was founded by TV presenter and conservationist Chris Packham.
Cadw has since suspended any future culls.
Legal experts in the House of Commons have questioned the cull’s legality and Mr David has raised a number of legal questions with NRW.
Mr David said he had been reassured by the Welsh Government’s Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Dafydd-Elis Thomas AM, that Cadw has “suspended” further pigeon culls at Caerphilly Castle and that a review of the policy was underway.
the Member of Parliament said: “Many people in Caerphilly have expressed their outrage at what has happened in the Castle. I would hope that any review of bird control at the castle will show that there are far better ways of controlling the numbers of feral pigeons than shooting them.”
He also confirmed that he, alongside Caerphilly AM Hefin David, will meet with Cadw on Friday, June 21 to “seek assurances from Cadw that these barbaric culls will never happen again”.
Carol Gravenor, who runs Caerphilly Bird Rescue alongside her husband, Ray Gravenor, told Caerphilly Observer she would prefer it if the culls stopped altogether.
She said: “I’ve offered to take it into my own hands, I’d happily put three or four dummies up myself to keep birds away.
“There was no need to do what they did. They killed my birds and offered no apology.
“To actually do that is shocking. It’s a complete lack of care – it’s arrogant.”
Mrs Gravenor added: “How can I stand by and watch this? They’ll do what they want.
“There’s very few ducks and geese left. What is there left to cull? The people?
“They had no right to kill the birds. What I want answered is; why do they think they’re above the law?
“If I went out and started shooting into their sky with an air rifle, I’d be arrested.
“Why are they so worried about a little but of pigeon poo when there’s so much dog poo around the castle?
“Birds have feelings too. It makes no sense to me.”
Caerphilly Assembly Member Hefin David said: “This is welcome news and a positive response to the reaction from the local community. I’ve got a number of questions to ask and I will make sure these are aired at our meeting.”
Cllr Jamie Pritchard, who represents the Morgan Jones ward, said: “I wrote to Cadw on May 15 to voice my strong concerns and having spoken to Caerphilly Bird Rescue about the way in which the culling took place, there’s no way I believe any further culling can be justified.”
A spokesperson for NRW said: “Cadw can cull pigeons under a general licence and it is up to them to ensure they meet the terms of that licence and any other legal conditions under animal welfare. They should also demonstrate that they have tried other techniques first. They have not applied for a specific licence to kill birds.”
Caerphilly Observer has contacted Cadw for comment.