On Thursday 21 June, the European Court of Justice ruled against the Maltese derogation regime that allows the capture of seven species of wild birds, deeming it not to comply with the strict conditions laid down by Directive 2009/147 on the conservation of wild birds.
The directive requires member states to take the requisite measures to establish a general system of protection for several bird species. Derogations from that obligation are possible where there is no other satisfactory...