Charles sent Blair secret letters about hunting ban

PRINCE Charles wrote a series of confidential letters lobbying Tony Blair over the foxhunting ban before it became law, The Mail on Sunday can reveal.

The Prince is known to have been an opponent of the ban at the time of the secret correspondence in 2002, when Mr Blair’s Labour Government was steering the legislation through Parliament.

The existence of the letters will add to the controversy over the Prince’s active role in politically contentious subjects. He is known to have lobbied Government departments on various issues including global warming and architecture.

The Freedom of Information watchdog has now ordered that the letters be published, but the Government is stalling over their release.

The Prince is a keen supporter of foxhunting after taking up the sport aged 26. He is reported to have told a private gathering in 2002: ‘If the Labour Government ever gets around to banning foxhunting, I might as well leave this country and spend the rest of my life skiing.’

Traditional fox hunting is illegal in Scotland but the law is not as strict as south of the Border, where only two dogs can be used to flush out a fox for pest control purposes.

However, earlier this year the Scottish Government announced plans for a review.