Hunting

(asked on 16th November 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the frequency of public land being used for illegal fox hunting under the guise of trail hunting; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure the effective enforcement of the prohibition on fox-hunting on public land.


Answered by
Rebecca Pow Portrait
Rebecca Pow
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This question was answered on 19th November 2021

The Hunting Act 2004 makes it an offence to hunt a wild mammal with dogs except where it is carried out in accordance with the exemptions in the Act.

Those found guilty under the Act are subject to the full force of the law. As enforcement of the Hunting Act is an operational matter for the police, Defra has not assessed the frequency of offences against the Hunting Act committed on public land.

Reticulating Splines