News for JANUARY &

News for JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2001 ................

Fears for the Exmoor deer, Western Daily Press, 26th February 2001
Fears were raised for the future of Exmoor's famous red deer herd last night after a confirmed outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease only 25 miles from the national park. An emergency meeting of local authorities on Exmoor voted to restrict movements across the park after hearing the disease could easily spread from Burdon Farm in mid-Devon on prevailing winds. Signs will be placed at the entrances to the park, in car parks and on footpaths discouraging people from venturing on to the moor and farmland for at least the next seven days. The feral deer population on Exmoor being cloven-hooved animals are capable of spreading foot-and-mouth, total elimination of the herd could be the only answer to prevent the disease spreading like wildfire.

Click here for further information from the British Deer Society

Hunting abandoned as worries grow, Anna Browning, Western Morning News, 23rd February 2001
Foxhunting was voluntary abandoned yesterday as support for farmers in their bid to curb foot and mouth disease came from all corners of the community across the region. With public concern growing about the deadly disease, footpaths were closed and ramblers vowed to stay away from the farms. The Countryside Alliance announced that hunting was to be voluntary suspended nationwide for a week, when it would be reviewed depending on the spread of the disease. The decision affected around 60 hunts in the region.

The Countryside Alliance Campaign from Hunting: message from Sam Butler, Chairman, 22nd February 2001
With immediate effect, hunting is to be suspended for one week, or until further notice, during which time the senior vet at MAFF hopes to get a clearer picture of what they are dealing with. The Master of Foxhounds Association is issuing an appropriate notice regarding the above and fallen stock collection.

Hand of Friendship extended to hunt, Western Morning news, 12th February 2001
The country sports fraternity gathered in a show of unity in North Devon at the weekend to voice their opposition to the proposed ban on hunting. Around 40 gamekeepers from across the country travelled to ride with the Dulverton East Hunt, beginning at the Blackcock Inn, Molland on Exmoor on Saturday. For some it was their first time on horseback, while others came from as far as Wales. But they were all united in their determination to show the Government just how deep feelings in the countryside were running after politicians recently voted to outlaw hunting - and it wasn't just among huntspeople. Among the gamekeepers was chairman of the National Gamekeepers Organisation, Brian Mitchell, who works on the Castle Hill estate at Filleigh, near South Molton.
The gamekeepers were welcomed by a 600 strong crowd of supporters along with more than 200 mounted hunters, many members from other Westcountry hunts who were keen to show support to this unique event. And the icing on the cake was £20,000 that was raised for Devon Air Ambulance, the Dulverton East Hunt and the National Gamekeepers Association. Rob Eggins, who organised the event, said the whole thing had snowballed. "This started off as a fun idea for me and a few mates," he said. "But then the idea caught on and attracted gamekeepers who hadn't even been on a horse, But even so it is hard to believe that so many people have turned up. Today we have the perfect hand, a day shared with good friends, nearly £20,000 raised for charity and a strong message signalled to the Government that in the Countryside we all stand together. MPs' ignorance and contempt for our communities, livelihoods and sporting traditions cannot be consigned to history in pursuit of cynical political games. We're saying to Mr Blair: 'Do not demonise and criminalise us. We'll see you on March 18 at the Great London March'".

Hue and cry as visitor outfoxes the Lords, The Times, 6th February 2001
Foxhunting came to the Houses of Parliament yesterday after an especially cunning member of the species slipped into the building where its destiny may be decided. The fox was seen by a security officer at 7am in the desterted lobby of the House of Lords, where in weeks the members will mingle ahead of a vote to overturn a ban on hunting with hounds. Its discovery in security-conscious Westminster triggered a police chase along the red-carpeted corridors and up stone staircases. After 14 minutes, it was cornered on the third floor of a west wing, in the Hansard office, there the official report of Parliament's proceedings is prepared. It was sitting on a cabinet next to a division bell. The assembled officers asked Westminster authorities to postpone the daily tests of the bell system, fearing that it "would cause a lot of distress to the animal". Then they called in the RSPCA, which has been at the forefront of the campaign to ban foxhunting. An animal collection officer reported that the fox was "quite wearied" from the chase but otherwise in reasonable condition. It was freed in St James's Park. An RSPCA spokesman did not rule out the possibility that the fox had been placed in Westminster by anti-hunting campaigners but said: "We think it was within the realms of possibility that it got in there itself".
The fox is not the first creature to breach Westminster's defences in recent times. Another fox got past Downing Street's ring of steel and a rat made it to the Commons chamber a year ago. It crossed the floor during a late night debate on Northern Ireland legislation.

Deer injuries too much for BBC, Letter to the Editor from Mervyn Nicholls, Molland, Mid Devon Gazette, 6th February 2001
May I express a thank you to you for publishing the photograph of the red deer hind found dead on this farm and the excellent accompanying story. The injuries were so horrific that the producer of the BBC Spotlight programme considered that they far exceeded the guidelines of what could be shown on television. I have received many congratulatory comments on this article (some from complete strangers) and for bringing this animal's appalling death to the public's attention.
It appears from Mr Andrew Wasley's (LACS) comments that shooting is not the best option to replace hunting, although after the LACS being in existence for some 70 years, I would have thought that they should have devised an acceptable alternative by now. Hunts do hold meets on the farm, sometimes at their request and sometimes at ours, and if I had been asked by your reporter I would have said so. I firmly believe that there is no better means of control and conservation available to farmers at present. At no time did the article suggest that this deer was shot by poachers on this farm and I certainly did not need a vet to ascertain the cause of death. Starvation! I am not a member of any hunt, nor do I subscribe to or belong to any organisations such as the Countryside Alliance.

Our readers say 'NO' to hunt ban, Somerset County Gazette, 26th January 2001
Somerset County Gazette readers voted overwhelmingly against a ban on hunting with hounds. Thousands responded to a telephone poll in which they were asked: Do you agree with the outright ban on hunting with hounds?". When lines closed 2790 votes had been registered. 476 callers (17%) said 'yes' to a ban, but 2,314 (83%) pressed the 'no' option button. The outcome showed even greater support for the hunt ban than the Gazette's telephone poll in 1999 when the balance was 26% against 74%.
Bridgwater MP Tom King said the outcome of the poll was not surprising. "The number had increased because more people have looked at it and found a ban is not reasonable or sensible", he said. Jeanette Branton, chairman of Endangered Exmoor, said the outcome was "verification" of the feelings of people in the countryside. "A lot of people have obviously thought about this since the last time and realise what's at stake for people living in rural areas", she said. "We are very pleased to see this result".
County Gazette Editor-in-Chief Ken Bird said: "No-one is suggesting for a minute that this poll is scientific, but the sheer number of people taking the trouble to ring in provides evidence of the depth of feeling over hunting".

Lingering death of deer shot on moor, Mid Devon Gazette, 23rd January 2001
A shocked Molland farmer, who found a deer on his land that died after horrific gunshot injuries, says that if hunting is banned, wild animals will suffer more - not less.
Mervyn Nicholls, who has farmed the family-run farm on the edge of Exmoor for 50 years, says the six year old Red Deer hind would have died a long and agonising death before his brother found it on Friday evening in a ditch. "The shot went into the right nostril, through the bridge of the nose, broke the left jaw bone and the mouth dropped down and was hanging lose. There is no way it could either eat or drink. I estimate it would have spent about a week like this before it died. The ravens and magpies had already picked one of its ears off, quite possibly when it was alive. I have never hunted in my life - I can't ride a horse - but I have watched hunts and I can truly say I have never seen anything that has upset me like this in 50 years. I can't stay quiet when I see something as barbaric as this". He added: "For anyone who says that shooting is a better alternative than hunting, they ought to have a look at this deer and then make up their minds. I see no advantage in banning hunting and substituting it for something that is more cruel - I think the RSPCA should support hunting as it is best for the welfare of deer and foxes. At the moment there is no better alternative. I can't understand how the League Against Cruel Sports and the RSPCA can say this is more humane than hunting. If they want to change it they must forward some better alternatives."

"Let them go ahead and try", That's the message out of Exmoor, Somerset County Gazette, 19th January 2001
Defiant hunters have vowed to carry on the chase despite an overwhelming vote by MPs in favour of an outright ban on their centuries old tradition. Hunt supporters were in no mood to accept defeat after high profile protests in the days leading up to the vote. Delegations from Taunton and West Somerset took part in a three-day vigil outside Parliament, a mass rally in Cornwall and a demonstration in Taunton. And yesterday Minehead Harriers master Sid Westcott warned that a ban would turn law abiding country people into lawbreakers. He said: "The strength of feeling is such that defiant is the only way to describe it. The result of the vote was not unexpected but it still hasn't really sunk in. I'm 66 and I've hunted all my life - it's a way of life and it would be a disaster for areas like West Somerset, both socially and economically. But it's not the end of the road and we haven't given up.
The alliance is planning a mass Liberty and Livelihood rally in London on March 18th. Endangered Exmoor, the rural campaign group launched 18 months ago, said it would focus its attention on the rally. Its chairman, Jeanette Branton said: "Our message is that if the Government wants to ban hunting then let them go ahead and try - but then the fight will really begin. We are not going to sit back and let them ruin people's lives and livelihoods. The real issue of animal welfare is that the alternative methods of management are really cruel."

Traffic at a Standstill, Somerset County Gazette, 19th January
Hundreds of blood sports campaigners from Taunton Deane and West Somerset brought traffic to a halt in Taunton town centre on Wednesday in protest at the Government's Hunting Bill. Demonstrations from hunts and groups including Endangered Exmoor, Quantock Staghounds, Liberty, the Countryside Alliance, Minehead Harriers, Dulverton East Foxhounds and Taunton Vale Foxhounds gathered for the lunchtime rally. Dozens of trucks, tractors, trailers, quad bikes, Land Rovers and lorries brought the mid-day traffic to a standstill, many with large signs on their sides, including Winston Churchill's famous words: "Never under-estimate the minority." One farm labourer even brought six tonnes of manure in a trailer and threatened to unload it onto the street. Paddy Groves, master of the Quantock Staghounds, said the protest was a "token gesture" to mark the debate in the House of Commons. "A lot of people on Exmoor and in this area feel very strongly about this", he said. "Any victory will be a hollow one for the opponents, but there's still a long way to go and a lot of questions to be answered. Even if the ban goes through we can take it to the European Court of Human Rights, and how would they implement it anyway? There is many a successful martyr who makes a hero". Minehead Harriers master Sid Westcott said any hunt ban could lead to a threat to shooting, fishing and even horse racing.

Urban-rural issues not so different, Somerset County Gazette, 19th January
Hunt supporters say a snap survey has revealed that the divide beteen town and country is not as great as previously claimed. Rural action group Endangered Exmoor spent three days in Taunton and Wellington last week discovering the main issues for the Government affecting the daily lives of local people, and of 581 people questioned only 1.04 per cent said field sports was a priority MPs should address. Crime came top of 12 issues in the survey before health, the cost of living, housing and fuel prices. Europe, personal freedom and flooding featured. Endangered Exmoor secretary Pat Bawden said importantly 84 per cent of people felt field sports was not an issue for parliament. "Though we live and work in rural Somerset I don't believe the issues affecting our day-to-day lives are fundamentally different from our friends in the towns, and in a most convincing way our survey confirms that". Taunton MP Jackie Ballard's constituency covers Exmoor, but the Group, set up in June 1999 under the banner representing rural communities, livelihoods and businesses in the area, has failed ot change her anti-hunt stance.

Decision day for the hunt, Western Daily Press, 18th January 2001
Self-styled Rural Freedom Fighter Blue galloped into town yesterday on a mission to defend hunting. The ten year old ridden by Geoff Barfoot-Saunt from the Ledbury Hunt who had left home at 4am, was the centre of attention among the hunt supporters who gathered at Westminster as MPs debated a ban. This was not a mass demonstration like the one that accompanied the Second Reading of the Hunting Bill just before Christmas, but organisers explained that most supporters were attending meetings round the country.
Those who braved the freezing weather waved placards defending hunting, and waved at the motorists who tooted their horns to show support. Around 20 people had travelled up from Somerset, mainly members of the Minehead Harriers and the Devon and Somerset Staghounds, and representatives of the Endangered Exmoor organisation. "More or less everybody who has come today will have their livelihoods under threat if there is a hunting ban, so we wanted to support the vigil and come along and be counted," said Libby Porch. "We include a farrier, farmers, a chap who hires horses out and a lady who hires out accommodation for people who come hunting. My partner is a farrier, and as the season is from the end of July to the start of May, we would lose perhaps 70 percent of our income".
Throughout the country an army of hunting enthusiasts was mobilised yesterday for a last-ditch show of defiance. On what would go down in history as the blackest-ever day for bloodsports, hunt officials and their supporters invaded town centres across the country, parading banners at shoppers and disrupting traffic in a massive demonstration co-ordinated by the pro-hunt Countryside Alliance. And they warned, their action was just a foretaste of the kind of civil disobedience the Government can expect if the Bill eventually becomes law. Dozens of huntsmen have openly declared they will defy any attempt to turn them into criminals, and warn there will simply not be enough police to enforce the law. And yesterday they gave town-dwellers the full flavour of the outrage now gripping members of the country's 300-odd hunts. The demonstration is likely to be the last major one before the massive march the alliance is to stage through London on 18th March, which is set to go ahead despite fears that it may get out of control.
Yesterday the protests were mainly good-natured, though there was no hiding the depth of anger among those taking part. In Taunton traffic was brought to a standstill at lunchtime as hunt followers drove tractors, lorries and loaded muck spreaders through the main shopping streets. Hunt members from across Somerset gathered on The Parade and denounced the town's Liberal Democrat MP Jackie Ballard for voting in favour of a ban. Dulverton East Foxhounds employeed Sue Allibone, aged 45, said: "She doesn't represent the majority of the people in the area. About 95 per cent of people we have seen today supported us. If the ban goes ahead we will lose our home and all our animals". Farmer, Banger Milton, 40, from Est Anstey, Exmoor, said: "I have three children aged between seven and ten and they love hunting. We are sheep farmers and foxes need to be controlled or they will kill lambs". Dick Lloyd, ex-chairman of the Devon and Somerset Staghounds, said he had been involved in hunting on Exmoor for 53 years. "This is being decided by a huge number of urbanite Labour MPs who know as much about hunting and the countryside as I know about jet airplanes - which is nothing. I think they just don't like country people", he said.

Decision day for future of hunting, Western Morning News, 17th January 2001
MPs will today vote on whether or not to end the centuries-old tradition of hunting with hounds as Home Secretary Jack Straw's controversial bill reaches its committee stage in the House of Commons. As Westminster prepares for tonight's vote, supporters and opponents of the Hunting Bill will be making their voices heard in the Westcountry. Among them is Sue Jones 24, who says her livelihood and whole way of life depends on hunting. Miss Jones says a "yes" vote will force her to move from the village in which she has lived all her life and does not want to leave. A ban, she says, will destroy the thriving rural community she loves so much. It would spell the end for the stables where she works while ripping the heart out of the countryside. "A ban would change everything. It's what makes the village work. It's a way of life", she said, "and I like my life, it's what I chose to do".

Issue is not for politicians to debate, Western Morning News, 17th January
A westcountry pro-hunting pressure group says hunting is at the bottom of the general public's list of priorities. After questioning 581 people in Taunton and Wellington last week, Endangered Exmoor said 84 per cent believed a ban on hunting was not an issue for Parliament to decide. Compared to isues such as crime, health, the cost of living, housing, Europe and the cost of fuel, just over one per cent said hunting was their top priority.
A total of 33 volunteers from Endangered Exmoor quizzed people of voting age by asking them to put 12 issues in the order they would wish the Government to tackle them. They found another 2.75 per cent listed field sports in their top three priorities of concern, 2.92 per cent puyt the sport in their top six choices, while 17.2 per cent put it under number six. The majority, 83.99 per cent, said field sport were not important or simply irrelevant.
Endangered Exmoor was set up in June 1999 to represent rural communities, livelihoods and businesses on Exmoor. Its secretary Pat Bawden said: "Although we live and work in rural Somerset I do not believe that the issues affecting our day-to-day lives are fundamentally different from our friends in the town and in a most convincing way our survey confirms that. Our survey shows that the people of Taunton and Wellington feel that there are many more important issues for Parliament than field sports and we agree wholeheartedly".

"Hunt ban could kill point-to-points too" -
Letter from Sir Robin Dunn, MC., Western Daily Press, 16th January
Sir, You proclaim: "A new season of increasingly popular point-to-point racing is about to get under way (11th January), although this may be the last of the Government bill to ban hunting becomes law. Every point-to-point is organised by a Hunt, whose Master is responsible to the Jockey Club for the conduct of the meeting. No point-to-point would be financially viable if the officials and helpers, even sometimes the course builders and landowners, did not give their services free of charge. They do this because the proceeds go to the Hunt, to which they are pleased to contribute in this way.
It is possible that the Jockey Club might allow some kind of informal National Hunt racing not connected with hunting, in the event of a ban. But this is not likely. At present all entries have to have a certificate signed by the Master that the horse has been "regularly and fairly hunted during the current season". Established racecourses are not likely to welcome competition from point-to-point courses. And if the proceeds no longer went to the hunts, how many people would be prepared to give their services for nothing?
If you enjoy a picnic in the country with the children watching exciting racing, write to your MP asking him to vote against a ban on hunting. No hunting, no point-to-pointing.

Defiant huntsmen ready to flout ban, Western Daily Press, 15th January
Die-hard huntsmen are ready to defy any legislations that makes them outlaws, one of Britain's best-known foxhunters warns. Hunters are preparing to exploit any loopholes in the law and even pretend to be innocently walking their dogs if caught by police. Captain Ronnie Wallace said even if the Government's Hunting Bill becomes law, a hard core of devotees will simply carry on as normal. MPs are due to vote on Wednesday on a crucial stage of the bill, deciding whether to allow hunting, ban it completely or introduce regulations. With overwhelming support from anti-hunt Labour MPs the second option is almost certain to be approved, and although the Bill could be held up by the General Election, Labour is likely to make its completion a manifesto pledge. That could confirm next hunting season as the last, officially.
But Captain Wallace, master of the Exmoor Foxhounds, has other ideas. "We don't think they will be able to stop us if we carry on", he said. "The police will react very badly if we all turned into criminals and there are so many of us I don't see how they can possibly kep order". Farrier, John Kent, who does not hunt but shoes nearly 100 hunt horses at his forge in Exford, near Minehead, said that was a view shared by many. "The Government will have a hell of a job to police it if it becomes law", he said. "If they want to go up on the moor to hunt I don't see how anyone can stop them".
Dozens of demonstrations are expected to take place this eek as the pro-hunting lobby steps up the pressure on the Government to allow hunting to continue.

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