Londoners of all ages showed their support last Friday, as hounds and hunt staff in traditional kennel attire arrived in the capital.

With the government's consultation to ban trail hunting expected imminently, the countryside delivered a strong message to Downing Street, as members of the public enthusiastically engaged with the hunt staff and hounds, learning more about trail hunting and the catastrophic effects that the government's proposed ban would have on rural communities.

The move has been seen as yet another attack on rural people, as part of what many have termed a "war on the countryside", following controversial government policies such as the Family Farm Tax and the upcoming consultation on restricting shotgun ownership, both of which have been met with strong opposition from rural communities.

Figures suggest that the broader public feel the same way. Recent polling from ORB revealed that two thirds of voters believe the government neglects rural people and does not care about them.

Last Friday served as yet another example of this: the hounds were a huge hit with people both young and old, many of whom voiced opposition to the government's proposals and signed up to Future for Hunting, which is a joint campaign between the Countryside Alliance and the British Hound Sports Association.

The event came as part of Hounds in the Community week, a national initiative coordinated by the joint Future for Hunting campaign. This dedicated week, which was designed to showcase the vital role that hunts and hounds play in their communities, was an enormous success with events taking place all across the country last week (15 to 22 February).

Hunts took part in a variety of activities to celebrate Hounds in the Community week including gatherings at local pubs, children’s meets, open days at kennels and coffee mornings.

Polly Portwin, Director of the Campaign for Hunting at the Countryside Alliance, said:

"We have been incredibly encouraged by the huge support that hunting has received during Hounds in the Community week. People of all ages and from all parts of the country have had the opportunity to witness first-hand the vital role that hunts and hounds play in their communities, and to learn more about the government's misguided plan to ban a lawful and hugely important activity.

"It's crucial that the government recognises the mistake it is making in pursuing a ban on lawful trail hunting. The last Labour government wasted 700 hours of parliamentary time on banning hunting, and in doing so, completely destroyed their relationship with the countryside for a generation. More than 20 years later, they are now trying to ban the very thing they encouraged the hunting community to do instead.

"The opportunity is there for the government to mend its broken relationship with the countryside, but to do this, it needs to focus on the priorities of the nation, and legislate for rural communities, not against them. In the meantime, the Countryside Alliance will continue to campaign for lawful trail hunting, and to urge the government to reverse its misguided proposals."

Sign up to the Future for Hunting campaign here to help protect hounds, hunts and the rural way of life: Future for Hunting.

Image credit: Lou Siggers Photography