Yesterday afternoon (18 March), peers from all sides of the House, including senior voices in Labour, held the government to account on its proposed ban on trail hunting.
Speaking in the House of Lords, the Earl of Leicester (Con) asked the government "what assessment they have made of the contribution of trail hunting to the rural economy".
The Minister's response showed that the government has made no assessment of the socio-economic impact of a ban, and that despite this, they will be consulting on "how" to deliver a ban - not whether they should.
Not one peer spoke in support of the ban, with many instead pointing out that a ban on lawful trail hunting represents "yet another attack on the countryside" and should not be a priority for the government.
The Earl of Leicester pointed out that hunting contributes £100 million to the rural economy each year, and highlighted a Countryside Alliance survey that found that 97% of hunting participants believe the activity to benefit their physical and mental health.
Baroness Mallalieu (Lab), President of the Countryside Alliance, castigated the government for the policy, stating that "a ban on trail hunting will be seen as a punch in the stomach by people who have already endured a considerable amount of distress as a result of other government policies".
Countryside Alliance Vice-President, Baroness Hoey (Lab), was equally scathing. She pointed to the huge number of jobs that will be lost if trail hunting is banned, and starkly criticised the logic of a ban:
"What is the justification for this when so few people have been prosecuted for illegal hunting? If a couple of Peers behave badly, we get rid of them; we do not get rid of the whole House of Lords—surely she should look at that example."
Baroness Prentis of Banbury (Con), a trustee of the Countryside Alliance, also questioned the government's priorities:
"I am concerned that other priorities will be overtaken if this consultation and legislation go ahead. Does the Minister really not have other things that she would rather do?"
But despite the many salient points made by peers, the Minister continued to reaffirm her intention to pursue a ban, and stated that the consultation on how to ban trail hunting would be coming soon. She did, however, stress that "there are no plans to include other activities, such as drag hunting and clean boot hunting, in the ban on trail-hunting".
This exchange is but further confirmation that a trail hunting ban is neither justified nor necessary - it is "yet another attack on the countryside".
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