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Law and Politics
Labour Vows to End Trail Hunting
Will we finally see an end to hunting with packs of hounds?
Hunting with packs of hounds is a barbaric British tradition. Although technically outlawed in 2004 under the last Labour government, it still continues on a regular basis due to a loophole in the law.
What does it entail?
Every week during the foxhunting season, innumerable terrified foxes are chased to exhaustion, before being literally torn apart by packs of baying hounds when they can no longer outrun the dogs.
Stags, too, are chased to exhaustion before being killed. Even mink are hunted, despite their small size, after otter hounds hunted the native otters to near extinction and forced the government to outlaw otter hunting.
Nevertheless, any otters unlucky enough to be caught in the path of a mink hunt are likely to meet the same fate.
Is it popular?
No. Around 80% of the British public are against this abhorrent and sadistic ‘sport’. In fact, the promise to outlaw hunting with hounds was a major campaign issue for the previous Labour government and was probably a major factor in their election victory.
