Calls to end ‘trail’ hunting in Peak District National Park

The League Against Cruel Sports used a fox postie to deliver the mail to the national park’s Bakewell Visitor Centre.

The postcards have been signed by the public and state: ‘trail hunting is a myth invented by the hunts so they can carry on hunting foxes’.

John Petrie, the League Against Cruel Sports senior campaigns manager, said: “Most national park authorities in England no longer allow fox hunts onto their land, because what they claim to be doing – hunting a pre-laid trail instead of an animal – has become increasingly discredited and shown to be a sham.

“It’s time for change and for the Peak District National Park Authority to protect wildlife and preserve nature by banning fox and trail hunting on its land.”

The Peak District National Park, along with Dartmoor and Exmoor, is one of the only national park authorities in England and Wales which still allow trail hunts on their land. Ten other national park authorities have policies which prevent hunts from using their land.

The campaign is backed by the Time for Change Coalition Against Hunting representing 34 organisations.

Despite a fox hunting ban coming into force in 2005, the League Against Cruel Sports compiles reports showing hundreds of eyewitness sightings of suspected illegal fox hunting every year – some of which take place on our national parks.

John Petrie added: “We need fox hunting laws to be strengthened by the next government so that fox hunts can no longer chase and kill animals, something sadly going on despite the fox hunting ban.

“In the meantime, national parks and landowners need to deny the hunts access to their land so that the cruel and senseless killing of foxes is ended once and for all.”The Peak District National Park Authority confirmed they had received the postcards on Tuesday May, 14.

A Peak District National Park Authority spokesperson said: “Decisions on what takes place on land owned and managed by the National Park Authority is based on what is lawful under relevant legislation set by the government. This currently includes trail hunting.“To that end, we do not discriminate or consider it our role to otherwise ban an activity which is lawful.“We are not a hunting regulator and have no specific role to provide expertise in this area.

“Our statutory role, in this instance, is limited to the land that is owned by the authority and our powers therefore do not extend to other land within the National Park, for example that within private ownership.

“There are currently no approved applications for trail hunting on land owned by the Authority.

“It is important, therefore, that if anybody witnesses any activity that they believe to be illegal, they report it to the police.

“We have not received any evidence of illegal activity on authority-owned land.

“We take any reports of unlicensed trail hunting on land that we manage very seriously and where we are made aware we will seek urgent clarification from the relevant groups.”