May is forced to call off the dogs
» PM ditches plan for a free vote on fox hunting » 85% of us back ban on ‘barbaric’ blood sport
THERESA May has ditched plans to bring back fox hunting in a major victory for the campaign against blood sports.
The PM had planned to give MPs a free vote on scrapping the ban, brought in 13 years ago by Labour.
The ploy, revealed by the Mirror during the election campaign last May, backfired and may have helped lose the Tories their majority.
Asked on BBC1’s The Andrew Marr Show, if she still supported hunting, Mrs May said: “I’ve not changed my personal view. I have never fox hunted as it happens.
“As Prime Minister my job isn’t just about what I think about something, it’s actually about looking at what the view of the country is.
“I think there was a clear message about that, and that’s why I say there won’t be a vote on fox hunting during this Parliament.”
An aide made clear the next Tory manifesto would be unlikely to offer a vote, telling The Sunday Times: “We want to focus on issues that matter most to people – building more homes, continuing to raise school standards, investing in the NHS and delivering a good Brexit.”
Chris Pitt, of the League Against Cruel Sports, said: “Hunting is a barbaric practice which still sees British wildlife being torn to pieces by packs of hounds.
“Recent polling showed that opposition to hunting in the UK remains at an all-time high of 85%, so it’s clear that this pledge will be popular with the public.” Claire Bass, of the Humane Society International, said: “We welcome the fact that Mrs May has finally recognised that blood sports like fox hunting are completely at odds with the expectations of the voting public.
“It can never be acceptable in a modern, progressive society to sanction the chasing and ripping apart of a live animal for the sake of entertainment. That message has been heard loud and clear.”
But she urged the authorities to clamp down on the illegal hunts that are still taking place.
Shadow Environment Secretary Sue Hayman said: “The Tories have finally bowed to pressure from Labour and campaigners with this long overdue U-turn, just months after the Prime Minister publicly stated her support for a free vote.
“Eighty-five per cent of the public do not want a return of this cruel and barbaric activity.”
But Tim Bonner, chief executive of the pro-hunting Countryside Alliance, claimed there had been “no change” in Conservative policy.