Hounds join Hunting Bill protest (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Hounds join Hunting Bill protest

HUNT enthusiasts from the Cotswolds poured into Parliament Square with their dogs to protest against the proposed ban on hunting.

More than 100 members from the Cotswolds, Vale of the White Horse and Beaufort Hunts gathered outside the House of Commons as MPs voted in favour of the Hunting Bill at its third reading by 317 votes to 145.

The Bill, which would outlaw all hunting with dogs, will now be debated and voted on by the House of Lords.

The Cotswolds hunts joined a crowd of about 2,500 men, women and children, many of them accompanied by their dogs, for the two-hour demonstration.

The dogs' presence was used to highlight the risk posed to all types of dogs which could fall foul of the Bill, but particularly foxhounds.

Jo Aldridge, spokeswoman for the Beaufort Hunt, together with about 50 fellow hunt members, seven pack hounds and a variety of working dogs such as lurchers and beagles, was among the throng.

She said: "It was the most cosmopolitan collection of people you could imagine, from all walks of life with the common love of hunting. I think it would be criminal to ban it."

Despite assurances from the RSPCA that homes would be found for hounds she said the reality would be different.

Fox hounds are supremely fit and are bred to be that, they can cover up to 70 or 80 miles during a hunt and require a lot of exercise which most people would be unable to give them, she said. "If you can't give them the quality of life they are bred for then they are going to be put down."

Speaking on behalf of the Vale of the White Horse Hunt, whose members joined the protest, joint master Mark Hill said: "What are you going to do with any of the hounds once the sport is banned? They don't make pets."

In defiance of a potential ban he added: "We are not going to be banned. We are going to carry on.

"The legislation as it stands now is pure prejudice, it's more about the sort of people we are supposed to be.

"Those MPs who have voted against hunting have never made any efforts to come and see what we do and law made on that sort of basis is bad law."