Labour to double number of police officers enforcing fox hunting ban
Just to prove that there is more to life than Brexit the return of an old controversy into the political arena – I wonder if the same attention should be given to other rural crimes like fly tipping…?
Labour has unveiled plans to double the number of police officers tasked with enforcing the fox hunting ban and other wildlife crimes.
The party says it will put £4.5m into cracking down on bloodsports like hare coursing, badger baiting and stag hunting.
The number of officers in rural crimes units across the country would rise from 88 to 170 under the proposals in the party’s animal welfare manifesto, which is being released on Tuesday.
Other policies included in the document include closing loopholes in the 2004 Hunting Act that allow in practice illegal hunts to continue.
They would remove exemptions such as hunts being allowed for “research and observation” and on the “use of dogs below ground to protect birds for shooting”.