Boxing Day Hunt 1

In the run up to the Hunting Act 2004, Parliament dedicated 700 hours debating foxhunting. In the equivalent period, they dedicated just seven to discussing Iraq. The result of all that talk, perhaps inevitably, was a masterpiece of obfuscation. Fox hunting was banned. And yet it wasn’t, entirely. People could hunt, as long as they didn’t kill the fox. People could hunt as long as they didn’t kill the fox with dogs. Since then, the foxhunting industry has actually got stronger. Only one person has been prosecuted as a result of the ban.

And so we approach one of the most traditional events in the Lewes social calendar. On Boxing Day hundreds of riders will congregate outside the White Hart, for the 2006 version of the Boxing Day Hunt, the second since such an activity - with the vociferous support of our MP Norman Baker in Parliament - was deemed illegal. Where do you stand on this? Do you think that it is a cruel blood sport, which shows that barbarity lies at the heart of our society? Or do you believe it is a crucial part of our rural heritage? Surely much of the opposition to foxhunting - and last year’s meet was noticeable for its lack of conflict - has as much to do with class division as anything else. The upper classes usually keep themselves to themselves. At hunts they ride into town on horses, wearing red jackets, blowing bugles. It’s quite a sight, wherever your sympathies lie. AL