Anger as hunt master given ‘warning’
SCOTLAND’S only female hunt master will not be prosecuted after being charged by police with breaching fox-hunting legislation.
Claire Bellamy was accused after concerns were raised about practices by the Lauderdale Hunt in Selkirkshire last October.
But the Crown Office has taken the decision to issue a so-called ‘direct measure’ which will avoid lengthy court proceedings.
The 42-year-old – who took over as master at the Lauderdale Hunt last year after moving to Scotland from her native Dartmoor in Devon – has accepted the measure, which is an alternative to prosecution.
She will not appear in court and it will not be marked on her record, but serves as a warning to her future conduct.
Direct measures can range from warnings to fines of a maximum of £300 or 50 hours of unpaid work.
Fox-hunting laws are currently being examined by the Scottish Government following a review last year by Lord Bonomy.
The League Against Cruel Sports, which secretly filmed the Lauderdale Hunt’s activities on land near Galashiels, Selkirkshire, on October 28, criticised the decision.
Director Robbie Marsland said: ‘We are concerned that she will not appear in court. We are concerned that anyone considering breaking this law may be encouraged into thinking they will not have to face the courts.
‘The law as it stands is confusing and convoluted, meaning successful prosecutions are extremely difficult. This is not an acceptable position and only strengthens our resolve that the law must be improved. A decision from the Scottish Government is imminent and we urge them to act swiftly and decisively to really ban hunting in Scotland.’
But Jamie Stewart of the Countryside Alliance said: ‘Our view is that Claire acted within the law. The law states that to be deliberately hunting a wild mammal there has to be purpose and intent, which there was not.
‘We would happily have gone to court and confident she would have been found innocent. This decision saves expenditure to the public purse and she has effectively accepted the warning.
‘The decision is a victory for common sense, but we will continue to work with the Scottish Government in an effort to provide greater clarity of the law.’
Miss Bellamy was unavailable for comment yesterday.