Landowners handed new powers to shoot deer as numbers surge - with venison to be served up in schools

It will be easier to obtain a license for night-time and closed-season shooting, and farmers could be given the right to kill their deer to protect their crops.

Officials are also exploring serving venison in schools, prisons, and hospitals, to promote a domestic market for the meat.

It is estimated there are over two million deer in Britain, damaging one third of Britain's woodlands.

The Government will also consult on allowing male deer to be shot year-round rather than only during the closed-season.

The change was made in Scotland in 2023, where red deer stags can now be shot for the entire year.

Nature Minister Mary Creagh said deer can cause "significant damage" to trees, woodland, agricultural crops and native wildlife.

"We’re making it quicker and simpler for farmers, foresters and landowners to get the licences they need to protect their land while ensuring deer management remains safe and humane," she added.

Shooting deer after dark will help reduce numbers further - with the animals notorious for their nighttime feeding in open fields.

Deer are often blamed for eating farmers' crops, with some landowners reporting losses of £1million a year.

The animals also strip bark on trees, significantly reducing the value of timber at tree plantations.

Emma Reynolds, the Environment Secretary, said: "The reforms will be backed by dedicated deer officers and grant funding to support land managers in implementing control measures.

"The Government will also invest in research into drone‑based surveying technology to identify priority areas, with high deer populations, requiring action at landscape scale."

Deer numbers have soared in recent years, owing to an absence of apex predators and more crops being grown by farmers - which inadvertently provide deer with food.

However, some animal campaigners have questioned the decision.

Charles Smith-Jones, the technical adviser at the British Deer Society, told The Telegraph: "Deer are an integral and iconic part of the English environment.

"The British Deer Society hopes that any proposed future measures relating to their control will be discriminate and appropriate, ensuring that deer welfare remains a foremost priority while paying proper regard to public safety."