Essex Lion, Pumas, Panthers & Swiss black cat harassment judgment

16:00 Wed, 22 Jul 2026

The resigning member for Clacton has frequently said the UK needs to copy Australian policy.

In the 2010 Victorian State election, the winners were elected on a platform of searching for big cats in the Victorian highlands.

Shortly before the election in 2010, then Deputy Premier, Peter Ryan, declared there were

"enough credible sightings"

to justify search teams putting paws on the ground.

In August 2012, visitors to St Osyth, which is adjacent to Clacton-on-Sea, also demanded that authorities deploy all available resources in the hunt for a big cat: the world famous Essex Lion.

BBC reporters told us, while keeping a straight face, one of the witnesses worked at the Red Lion pub. Police eventually released the photo from witnesses who reported the first sighting of the Essex Lion:

The cats were never found but it is easy to find the policy of a big cat extravaganza started in Victoria in 2010, two years before the cult of the Essex Lion was born. (Please also see my statement on cults)

Peter Ryan, Victoria, Big Cat Search, Puma, Panther, Essex Lion

As Nige has told us,

"We need to do as the Australians do"

Is it really wise to copy hoaxes and policy errors from Australia?

For those who saw rumours about harassment & Debian, I published the evidence and recordings from the Swiss black cat harassment judgment here.

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