Labour vows to ban trail hunting as it opens public consultation

The government has opened its long-awaited public consultation on how to implement the ban, which will apply to England and Wales. Photograph: Neil Hall/EPA

The UK government has said it will ban trail hunting, the rural sport that police and animal rights activists have long accused of being a “smokescreen” for illegal foxhunting.

“We pledged to ban trail hunting in our manifesto and that is exactly what we intend to do,” said Sue Hayman, the animal welfare minister. “The nature of trail hunting makes it difficult to ensure wild and domestic animals are not put at risk of being killed or injured – that is clearly unacceptable.”