For fox sake ban it! Campaigners welcome Defra consultation on banning trail hunting and call for “decisive action to end a long-abused loopholes”
- Hayley O'Keeffe
- Mar 27
- 3 min read
A long-running legal loophole branded a “smokescreen for cruelty” could finally be shut down, as ministers launch a public consultation to ban controversial trail hunting, sparking fierce demands for a total crackdown on hunting with dogs.
Campaigners say the move, announced by Labour minister Baroness Sue Hayman this week, is a “critical and long-overdue step”, but warn anything short of a watertight ban risks another two decades of bloodshed in Britain’s countryside.
The consultation, published by Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, will seek public views on outlawing trail hunting, a practice introduced after the Hunting Act 2004 banned the chasing and killing of wild mammals with hounds.
Trail hunting, where dogs are supposed to follow an artificially laid scent, has long been accused of acting as cover for illegal fox hunts, something even the Government now acknowledges, admitting it can serve as a “smokescreen” for chasing and killing wildlife.
Dr Jane Washington-Evans of Wildlife Guardian, said: “This consultation represents a pivotal moment for animal welfare in England.
“For too long, trail hunting has operated in a grey area that has allowed illegal hunting to continue unchecked.”
She added that the scenes witnessed week after week defy belief.
“Packs of dogs followed by riders on so-called trails on main roads, near railway lines and even canals, it is absolutely ridiculous to suggest a trail was ever laid in thick brambles or dense woodland.”
Wildlife Guardian describes trail hunting as a “pantomime” that has allowed outlawed blood sports to persist under a veneer of legality, warning that wildlife continues to suffer while enforcement remains weak and public trust in the law has been eroded.
Now they are demanding ministers go further, and fast.
Their calls include a total legal ban on trail hunting with no exemptions, crystal-clear definitions to prevent future loopholes, and tougher penalties for offenders, including making hunting with dogs a recordable crime.
“The British public overwhelmingly supports protecting wildlife from cruelty,” Dr Washington-Evans said.
“This is an opportunity for the Government to deliver on that expectation and bring the law in line with both scientific evidence and public values.”
The Hunt Saboteurs Association, which has spent more than 60 years disrupting hunts in the field, has also backed the consultation, calling it a direct response to what it says is the “reality” of illegal hunting continuing under the guise of trail hunting.
But the group issued a stark warning: ban the practice without closing every loophole, and history will repeat itself.
“This consultation must result in a full, unambiguous ban on hunting,” it said.
“We don’t want another 20 years of animal cruelty and excuses.”
Public opinion appears firmly on their side. An Ipsos survey found 85% of people believe fox hunting should remain illegal, including 81% in rural areas, undermining claims that opposition is confined to urban Britain.
Ministers insist the consultation is part of a wider animal welfare strategy and have invited views from the public, landowners, conservation groups and hunt organisers alike.
For campaigners, the stakes could not be higher. After two decades of bitter division, they say this is the moment to finally end what they see as one of the UK’s most enduring animal welfare failures.
“This is not about tradition versus progress,” Dr Washington-Evans added: “It is about ensuring our laws genuinely protect animals from harm.”
Find out more at https://www.wildlifeguardian.co.uk and https://www.huntsabs.org.uk
