Schedule 1 - Exempt hunting
Hunting Bill
3:00 pm
Hon. Nicholas Soames (Mid Sussex, Conservative)
No, I am not suggesting that, but every now and again it is impossible to stop a dog—perhaps a young dog who may be out with older dogs to learn—from running off in pursuit of an animal and other dogs perhaps rushing after it. That does happen. During a previous hunting Bill, the hon. Member for Preseli Pembrokeshire (Mrs. Lawrence) said that she had trained her terrier to chase only rabbits and not
hares. That seemed unlikely, but I am sure that several old lags here remember that.
The matter is important. I should be grateful if the Minister would acknowledge the weight and importance of the evidence provided by the National Gamekeepers Organisation, and note and try to understand its specific concern. When he responds, will he confirm that he understands the great importance of gamekeepers in the good order, management and proper balance of conservation in the countryside, and, therefore, the essential requirement that their job should not be made any more difficult than it already is?