GOAL: to encourage Chris-Heaton Harris and other local MPs to change their views on fox hunting and vote NO on repealing the hunting act!

If you want your MP added to the list, leave a comment!

I'm aiming for 1,000 signatures in 2 weeks in order to prove that we do not want to see fox hunting being brought back to our country, and want the current hunting act not repealed, but strengthened.

 

The Government has stated it will bring forward a motion on a free vote enabling the House of Commons to decide its view on the repeal of the 2004 Hunting Act.

Some MPs, including local Daventry Conservative MP Chris Heaton-Harris, have already expressed that they would vote to repeal the act in the event of the free vote. This would mean bringing back cruel hunting practices that use dogs to kill animals in ways that have been deemed by veterinary professionals as slow and painful.

Approximately 80% of British people are opposed to hunting with dogs being brought back. This act being repealed will not only allow brutal fox hunts to resume legally, but hunting other animals too. Such a terrible death is undeserved of any animal.

Help us represent the voices of the population and convince MPs that this is not what the country wants or needs! Help them focus on real issues. We do not care about the "freedom to hunt" - we care about improving the lives of British people.

If your local MP isn't on the email list for this petition, SEND THEM A LINK TO IT!

MYTHS ABOUT HUNTING:

"It is an effective form of population control."
- fox hunts only account for 6.25% of total fox mortality.

"Foxes kill for pleasure! They destroy livestock, they're a pest!"
- foxes are opportunistic killers. If they are given the chance to kill more than they need to, they will do so, and 'cache' the rest of the kills for later access. Food is not always readily available to a fox, so they take advantage of it when it is.
Foxes only cause 1-3% of livestock damage and keep rabbit populations down, which are a much more serious pest.

"Only old foxes are killed."
- hunting from August on-wards is known as 'cub hunting' or 'cubbing'. Young foxes are killed or used to train hunting hounds.

"The fox dies instantly, it is not painful."
- approximately 20% of hunted foxes escape with horrible injuries, and do not die at the scene. Instead, it is presumed they die slowly from the injuries injured. Some hunters claim that the very first dog kills the fox instantly, but a study found that the fox is often still alive when being shredded by dogs.

"Only foxes and wild animals suffer from hunting, and I don't care about them."
- dogs suffer immensely from hunting. Between 5,000 and 7,000 dogs are killed unnecessarily by hunters every year; usually because they are too old or too slow to hunt. They also very often receive terrible injuries when wrestling with a struggling fox. This isn't just an issue of cruelty to wildlife - bringing back hunting will cause a rise in cruelty to dogs too.

"This is an issue of class envy!"
- no. It is an issue of animal welfare. Badger baiting and hare coursing are banned for the same reasons; they are cruel.

"We need to bring back hunting because currently the alternative ways of killing foxes are indiscriminate and much more cruel"
- bringing back hunting is not the answer. Strengthening the laws about 'humane' population control is. Furthermore, lamping foxes and then shooting them at a close range, or trapping them and shooting them are both kinder methods of killing as it is quick.
And foxes are a self-regulating population; large amounts of fox culls have been proven to have no real affect on national fox populations, and they will breed more to make up for large losses. But they cannot overpopulate. There are ways to deter foxes from your land and killing should only be a last resort.

Resource on humane fox deterrents

"Fox populations are growing, especially in urban areas, and need to be lowered"
- foxes cannot overpopulate. In all areas fox populations have reported to have remained stable according to scientific studies, with the exception of London and the south east, where fox populations have decreased by 10% since 1998. This is not the result of culls, which do not impact overall populations.

"The Hunting Act is an ineffective law that cannot be enforced"
- approximately one individual a week is arrested under the Hunting Act, and two-thirds of these are found guilty. The Hunting Act is crucial.

IF YOU AGREE WITH ME THAT THE HUNTING ACT 2004 IS A VITAL PIECE OF LEGISLATION THAT NEEDS TO REMAIN IN PLACE, AND TO REPEAL IT IS A STEP BACKWARDS IN TERMS OF ANIMAL WELFARE, SIGN THIS PETITION!