Pro-foxhunt lobby launches court battle, plans civil disobedience

THE long battle over fox hunting moved to the law courts yesterday as pro-hunt campaigners launched a legal challenge to overthrow the British Parliament’s ban on their sport.

Lawyers backed by the Countryside Alliance lodged papers at the High Court in London seeking a judicial review of the Hunting Act, which was finally passed by parliament on Thursday amid scenes of confusion and bitter recrimination.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who said he had hoped a compromise solution could be found, admitted the ban would be an issue at the general election, thought to be within the next six months.

“I am afraid the views on both sides are very, very entrenched. We will now go to the courts and I have no doubt it will be an (election) issue, but it always was going to be an issue,” said Mr Blair.

Countryside Alliance chief executive Simon Hart said that while they would be pursuing their legal case through the courts, a parallel campaign of civil disobedience was also “undoubtedly on the horizon”.

“We are not talking about a branch of football hooligans. We are talking about pillars of the community, people who have a huge respect for the law who are losing that respect,” he said as he arrived at the Royal Courts of Justice.

It has been reported that landowners are preparing to stop the British Ministry of Defence using their land for training, prevent the siting of electricity pylons and stop water companies using their land to spread sewage.

Rural affairs minister Alun Michael warned that such action would be “irresponsible, illegal and completely out of proportion”.

“These suggestions that they will extend the debate by somehow seeking to punish society for a decision that has been taken by the elected representatives of the constituents ... by a large majority, is to get things out of proportion,” he said.