The Countryside Alliance has confirmed that a scaled-back Boxing Day trail-hunting programme will go ahead this year, despite the worsening Covid situation and growing pressure to ban the practice on public land. Most hunts are scheduled for 27 December, as the holiday falls on a Sunday, traditionally a rest day for the hunting community.
Restrictions in Scotland and Wales have forced many packs to cancel public gatherings, while critics argue that trail hunting is often a front for illegal foxhunting. The Labour Party has called for a ban on hunts using public and government-owned land, a move the Countryside Alliance denounced as 'anti-rural'.
A Countryside Alliance spokesperson said: 'Trail hunting and popular festive meets are an important part of rural life. Labour have consistently performed poorly in the countryside in recent elections and it is no surprise when they pursue anti-rural policies.' Labour countered by citing a Farmers Weekly survey indicating increased popularity among farmers, and described trail hunting as 'an antiquated exercise'.
Pressure to end trail hunting has grown: in November, National Trust members voted overwhelmingly to ban it on their land, and Natural Resources Wales has also prohibited it. Activists estimate over 240 hunting days on Ministry of Defence land this year. Proponents maintain trail hunting is humane and legal, while critics point to a recent case where a prominent huntsman was fined for encouraging illegal foxhunting under a 'smokescreen' of trail hunting.
The Countryside Alliance dismissed allegations as 'ridiculous claims' and noted only a handful of convictions among hundreds of thousands of legal trail hunting days. Chris Luffingham of the League Against Cruel Sports accused the Alliance of defending a 'so-called sport that is as outdated and old-fashioned as it is cruel'.
