This may be new leadership, but it’s the same mission
Taking the helm of a century-old organisation is daunting, but the League’s mission remains clear: to end cruel blood sports. With new leadership in Defra, this year offers a pivotal chance to consign animal cruelty to history
Stepping into any new leadership role is daunting. When it is your first CEO role at an organisation with a 100-year history, which has been part of fabric of your life for as long as you can remember, it is even more so.
The government, too, has new leadership in Defra and I am looking forward to working with another Emma, Emma Reynolds MP, in her new position as Environment Secretary.
There are a few things on my agenda.
It beggars belief that using animals cruelly just for entertainment is still an issue in the twenty-first century – and more than 20 years since the passing of the Hunting Act. But those who gain pleasure from watching animals be harmed, whether it is hunting with dogs, shooting, dog fighting, or greyhound racing will go to great lengths to keep their so called ‘sports’ alive.
Hunting mammals with dogs is a case in point, which the government rightly prioritised as a manifesto pledge for animals. Whether foxes, stags, hare, otter or mink are the victim, the Hunting Act should have ended these practices, in line with overwhelming public opinion. But loopholes in the legislation, subterfuge and an outright disregard for the law have led to the persecution of animals continuing to be widespread. In the 2024-2025 fox hunting season, 397 incidences of foxes being chased were recorded by the League Against Cruel Sports.
That’s why it’s so important for the government to reform the Hunting Act, to tighten up the law, to consign these acts of cruelty to the history books, where they belong. The commitment to consult on banning trail hunting later this year is a positive start. It’s essential that timelines do not drift, but also crucially that any change in the law looks at the Hunting Act as a whole, to ensure we don't have to correct further loopholes or blatant by-passing of the law in the future.
Of course, the animal being hunted is only part of the picture. These practices, far from being traditional countryside pursuits, have grown into huge industries. The shooting industry releases some 61 million ‘game’ birds each year. These include non-native pheasants, bred in barren cages. Their release plays havoc with local habitats and wildlife. The grouse being shot elsewhere are at least native birds, but to produce unnaturally high numbers of them for ‘sport’, snares and traps take out swathes of other animals, heather and peat are burned, and mass outdoor indiscriminate medication is used to help them survive the unnaturally high population density.
While the leadership of the League Against Cruel Sports has changed, our mission hasn’t. Ending cruel ‘sports’ remains the heart and soul of the organisation. This year should represent a pivotal moment in ridding our countryside of cruelty for ‘fun’, and by working alongside government, and our new team in Defra, we are confident that together we will see the day when our wild animals are cherished and respected.
Be among the first to know when the government’s consultation on hunting lands: www.league.org.uk/hunting_consultation
