Traditional Boxing Day hunts have gathered across England, as opponents of a planned ban on trail hunting claimed Keir Starmer’s government had “alienated rural people”.
The warning came from the pressure group Countryside Alliance, which said tens of thousands of supporters had joined gatherings in the morning, as it released a poll suggesting 65% of people think the Labour administration unfairly neglects country communities.
Provisions for a ban on trail hunting are included in the government’s animal welfare strategy, which was published on Monday. The practice, which involves hounds following a scent rather than a live animal, was introduced to comply with a ban on pursuing foxes introduced in the Hunting Act 2004.
The ban is likely to cause further friction between the government and rural communities after the recent row over changes to inheritance tax breaks for farms, which led to a partial U-turn by the government on Tuesday. A consultation on how to implement the ban will be launched in early 2026.
Critics of trail hunting say it has been used as a smokescreen to enable illegal foxhunting. Hunt saboteurs who monitored hunts over the Christmas period provided what they claim is evidence of illegal activity.
Tim Bonner, the Countryside Alliance’s chief executive, said: “When Keir Starmer said he wanted a new relationship with the countryside, we all assumed he meant a better one, but in 18 months his government has alienated rural people and created the clear impression that it does not care about the countryside. Its warped priorities have put taxing family farms, raising rates for rural businesses and banning trail hunting above policies that would benefit rural people.
“While the partial changes to the family farm tax are a step in the right direction, the government must desperately learn the fundamental lesson of this policy debacle, which is that it needs to work with the rural community – not legislate against it.”
A poll by the analysis firm ORB International suggested only 36% of people in Britain agreed or strongly agreed that the government cared about people who live in the countryside, while 76% said they believed the government prioritised urban issues over rural ones. ORB surveyed 2,083 British adults online between 12 and 14 December.
Johnny Heald, the chief executive of ORB’s UK operation, is a director of the Countryside Alliance’s corporate vehicle, Working for the Countryside. A spokesperson for the pressure group said it operated separately to ORB.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “This government is committed to banning trail hunting, which is too often used as a cover for illegal foxhunting, and has strong public support across the country.”
Referring to its response to a review of the agricultural sector carried out by the former National Farmers’ Union president Minette Batters, it added: “This builds on previous animal welfare reforms delivered by this government, including giving police greater powers to prevent dog attacks on livestock, protecting farmers and animals alike.
“The Batters review highlighted the need for greater collaboration between industry, farmers and government – and that is exactly what we will do. We have increased the individual inheritance tax threshold from £1m to £2.5m, meaning couples with estates of up to £5m will pay no inheritance tax.”
Those seeking to exploit the planned trail hunting ban as a “culture war” issue include the Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage, who attended a hunt in Kent. He told GB News that the government was made up of people with “an ignorance” of rural communities.
Emma Slawinski, the chief executive of the League Against Cruel Sports, said: “Banning trail hunting isn’t an attack on the countryside, it’s an attack on those who would use weaknesses in the law to get around it, and who have done for the last two decades.”
Commenting on the ORB poll, she said: “The same polling shows banning trail hunting narrowly missed being in last place on the list of issues the respondents say would influence their vote at the next election, which suggests the narrative from the Countryside Alliance is completely out of touch with rural values.”
