New Threats
New Threats to the Future of Hunting?
Dear Editor,
I have been campaigning for hunting since the early 1990s. I would like to take this opportunity to draw some lessons for the next Local, European and Parliamentary Elections.
There are still many misguided people in Great Britain anxious to block any attempt to repeal the Hunting Act 04, and/or to remove all forms of "permitted hunting", and/or to stop practices essential to maintaining the infrastructure of our packs of hounds.
Further, among some hunting people there is a potentially disastrous complacency that a repeal of the Hunting Act is now inevitable.
I continue to keep in touch with politicians of all parties and persuasions about hunting. From them I learn that there is no certainty that, should a Conservative government be elected, there would be a majority for repeal in a free vote. It might happen that a small Conservative majority over any other party, but no overall majority, would have to rely on parliamentary support from another party. In such case there is risk that the supporting party might well make it a condition of not proceeding with a Repeal Bill.
Some seek to replace the Hunting Act with, say, making the fox a protected species except for Government organised culling programmes. Proposed entry of a Repeal Bill cannot but lead to re-ignition of the hunting controversy. Last time we lost our case, although we may well have won the logical arguments. Next time we must win the emotional and political ones as well. The key will be to focus on public relations efforts to get most of a broad spectrum of the media behind us.
The provision of help to pro-hunting MP candidates where needed, while doing nothing to harm their prospects, will be as important as the media focus. I have talked with some of these allies who believe that any overt support for Hunting would damage their chances of election.
We must respect this view. We must quietly let such candidates know of the organisational abilities and resources willing to help. We must campaign only after our offer has been accepted, and then only within and under the direction of the Local Campaigning Teams.
To keep the whole assistance low key for ‘wary candidates’ it would be best to have a single point of contact within each Hunt through whom the Campaign Team Leader can focus the assistance of hunting people. No doubt there are less sensitive pro-hunting candidates who might welcome an overtly pro-hunting but complementary independent campaign by the Hunts.
We will all need to work like foxhounds on both these tasks.
Meanwhile, the behavior of a minority of hunt followers (mounted, foot and car-borne) continues to be the worst threat to trail or foxhunting - after bigotry. Quite rightly, farmers and the general public resent thoughtless acts such as leaving gates open, blocking roads, cutting up grass verges, etc. This thoughtless indiscipline could be fatal to a return to proper foxhunting.
Good Hunting
Foxman
Explanatory Notes to Hunting Act 2004