It was wonderful to be at the Festival of Hounds at Peterborough yesterday to speak to so many of our members about their passion for hounds and the future of hunting, and to show off this unique gathering of hounds to the world through the national media. It was a warm day, although thankfully not as hot as it has been in recent years, but also overcast with the odd light shower. This was something of a gift for the observer in search of an analogy as the political outlook certainly includes grey clouds and the threat of rain. However much everyone present enjoyed the day, the government’s commitment to “ban trail hunting” hangs over everything.

Politics is a strange business, but surely one of its weirdest quirks is that this small hunting community has been at the centre of a political storm for decades. After the hostilities of the Blair government there was, at least, a hope that hunting had been dealt with and that we should be able to continue with what was left.

That hope, however, underestimated the obsession of a significant part of the Labour party which remains desperate to eradicate the hunting community. They kept hunting on Labour’s policy agenda through its arcane processes and committees and pushed it into the election manifesto. If there is an upside it is that the manifesto commitment is limited. It is not the all-out assault which appeared in Jeremy Corbyn’s manifesto and the Alliance has long been plotting the best way through the political maze that confronts us.

Throughout history hunting has faced existential challenges and always adapted, evolved and found a way forward. This time will be no different. I remain absolutely confident of that, not least because of the incredible dedication of the men and women who brought their hounds to Peterborough yesterday. Whether they showed beagles, bassets, harriers or foxhounds, their commitment to their hounds shone through as did their determination to secure a role for them in the future.

When I showed hounds at Peterborough many, many years ago, the hound show was part of the East of England Show – a massive event which lasted for four days. All that has gone and the showground itself is now being developed so that in a few years’ time the site will be a housing estate. The world will always change, but you can be absolutely certain that our traditions will continue and that hounds will still be shown.

Meanwhile, one of hunting’s staunchest defenders, our President Baroness Mallalieu, fired a shot across the bows of the Prime Minister in this morning’s Daily Telegraph. The full piece can be read here Starmer is about to repeat Blair’s very worst mistake but this paragraph sums up her message: “The Countryside Alliance has been warning the Labour Party for years about the political danger of legislating on hunting, not just because of the issue of trail hunting itself, but because of the message it sends to rural voters that the government is not interested in their priorities. More than that I do not believe that the country as a whole is impressed by partial, prejudice politics or believes that this issue should be a priority for a government with so many other serious issues on its agenda”.

Ministers should be in no doubt of all our determination to fight unjust law.

Image credit: Georgina Preston