In 1924 the League Against Cruel Sports was set up to combat cruelty to animals from cruel bloodsports and animal racing, and we’ve spent the 100+ years since then campaigning and lobbying to protect stag, hare, otter, mink, foxes from being hunted by hounds across our beautiful and precious countryside.
Just over 20 years ago, those who came before us cheered as the ink dried on the Royal Assent for the Hunting Act 2004, because - surely - after such a long time the law being enacted would spell the end of such cruelty?
Oh no. Not so. The hunts kept going as they very publicly said they would.
Instead, they found ways around the law — exploiting loopholes in the act and inventing the smokescreen of ‘trail’ hunting to continue killing wildlife for fun. Hunts claim to follow pre-laid trails laid with animal scent while in reality, they chase and kill wild animals just as they always have.
But the public, and crucially the government, saw through the ruse. And now the public gets to have their say via a consultation on how to strengthen the law.
Labour included a promise to ban trail hunting within its manifesto and, shortly before Christmas, reaffirmed that promise within its new Animal Welfare Strategy.
But this consultation goes further.
The government seems to have listened to the League and our peers within the sector when we lobbied – no, demanded – for the opportunity to tell ministers how the law should be changed in a much wider sense. This consultation gives us the chance to tell the government to remove those loopholes that the hunts have so expertly exploited, to add in a recklessness or “accidental” hunting clause and for stronger sentencing options for those who break the law.
This is a pivotal moment in our decades-long campaign to strengthen the Hunting Act. The new consultation is the most powerful tool we have to influence the future of hunting laws. And it’s also your opportunity to demand a real, effective ban that protects our wildlife from harm.
Public opinion on hunting is clear. Polling consistently shows a huge majority of people in the UK oppose hunting and want to see stronger protections for wildlife.
On the twentieth anniversary of the Hunting Act coming into force I was privileged to hand in a 104,000-signature petition to Number 10 urging the government to ban hunting, walking up Downing Street alongside my colleagues from other organisations within the Time For Change Coalition Against Hunting.
Then, this year, the League authored an open letter to Sir Keir Starmer signed by 36,000 people demanding the government stand by its promises.
This consultation is a direct result of that public pressure — and it must not be wasted. We know hunts will be very active in this consultation process, and as a result, we need to ensure that the vast majority of the public who back stronger hunting laws speak up too.
Together, we and our sector colleagues will be at the forefront of this process, submitting evidence, highlighting illegal practices, and highlighting how the law needs to change. We’ll ensure the truth about illegal hunting is heard loud and clear.
But we need your help.
We urge everyone who cares about animal welfare to get involved, because this isn’t just another petition, another letter, another promise: this is our opportunity close the door on the hunting of wildlife with dogs for good. We will provide you with all the information you need to call for stronger hunting laws and be part of the change we all want to see.
Let’s finish what the Hunting Act started.
See: https://www.league.org.uk/hunting_consultation/
Emma Judd, Head of campaigns and comms at the League Against Cruel Sports
The opinions expressed in this blog are the authors' and not necessarily those of the wider Link membership.
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