A name for the Authorities to nominate an unbiased physique to evaluation current laws and decide whether or not the Searching Act ought to be amended, repealed or retained has been made in a brand new political briefing paper.
The 2025 paper, “Damaged Countryside”, is by environmental author Charlie Pye-Smith and animal welfare guide Jim Barrington.
It’s a abstract of the “Rural Wrongs” venture, wherein the authors got down to examine how the 2004 Searching Act has affected previously hunted species. The pair spoke to these concerned in countryside administration throughout Britain and Eire, and consulted scientists finding out fox, deer and hare populations. These findings have been revealed in 2023 within the e-book, Rural Wrongs: Searching and the Unintended Penalties of Unhealthy Legislation, which was reprinted in 2025 – coinciding with the publication of the briefing paper.
The paper states that the authors’ intention is to “inform legislators and others about how the 2004 Searching Act has made life worse for each animals and folks and to stimulate debate”.
“We now have clear proof that the 2004 laws has prompted in depth animal struggling. The Labour Authorities has lately pledged to introduce laws to ban trail-hunting with out contemplating whether or not this might trigger much more struggling. There’s completely little doubt {that a} ban would have a damaging affect on the agricultural financial system and native communities,” it states.
“The aim [of this briefing paper] is to encourage politicians to think twice earlier than compounding the distress brought on by the 2004 Act by introducing much more restrictive laws.”
When H&H contacted Defra for touch upon the decision for an unbiased physique to evaluation laws, amongst different components of the paper, a Defra spokesperson stated that this authorities will ban trail-hunting, as set out in its manifesto.
Mr Barrington advised H&H the paper summarises the venture’s findings and describes “the detrimental affect of the Searching Act on wild animal welfare”.
“It then addresses how a ban on trail-hunting would have a devastating affect on the agricultural financial system and countryside communities. Certainly, we consider a trail-hunting ban would have a better affect on rural life than the Searching Act itself,” he stated.
“The doc additionally suggests a variety of attainable steps that is perhaps taken sooner or later to correctly handle the problems of cruelty and using hounds in wildlife administration – one thing anti-hunting teams are all the time reluctant to have interaction in or discover.”
The briefing paper highlights what a trail-hunting ban would imply for animals, rural communities and rural trades.
“Damaged Countryside reveals that such a measure could be a catastrophe for tens of hundreds of individuals and for home animal welfare,” acknowledged a press launch accompanying the briefing paper. “The bans would make some 10,000 hounds redundant. Most must be put down. 1000’s of searching horses would even be surplus to necessities.”
A British Hound Sports activities Affiliation (BHSA) spokesperson advised H&H it “absolutely helps” the decision for an unbiased evaluation, however this “should transcend the Searching Act 2004 to incorporate all wildlife laws below the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981”.
“Legal guidelines formed by ideology quite than proof have created a fragmented and inconsistent framework that too typically fails to guard animal welfare and undermines accountable wildlife administration,” stated the BHSA spokesperson.
“Poorly conceived laws has led to much less humane wildlife management, ineffective conservation practices and rising challenges for these managing the countryside.”
The spokesperson added that as a substitute of reviewing particular person legal guidelines in isolation, a complete, science-led evaluation by the Legislation Fee is required to “be certain that animal welfare stays the precedence whereas supporting coherent, sensible and efficient wildlife laws”.
“The BHSA will proceed to steer the combat in opposition to restrictions that fail each animals and rural communities,” he stated.
“We urge the Authorities to take this name critically and decide to an unbiased, evidence-based evaluation that genuinely advantages animal welfare, conservation and countryside administration.”
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H&H senior information author
Lucy is an skilled information journalist, reporter and presenter. Since becoming a member of the Horse & Hound group in 2015, Lucy has reported from main international sporting occasions together with the Tokyo Paralympic Video games and a number of European Championships, in addition to Badminton, Burghley and London, to call a couple of. She has lined present affairs and sports activities information throughout the total spectrum of equestrian disciplines and racing, in addition to human and equine welfare, trade information and court docket instances.
