A hunting ban will be hard to enforce

This is unprecedented in history and raises serious questions. Those who signed the Hunting Declaration included JPs and churchwardens, pensioners, teachers and civil servants. These are not anarchists.

Should they have to go through with this, they will do so insisting that they are tried and punished. Breaking the law is wrong, and hence they must not seek to avoid the consequences.

It is their respect for the law that forces them to consider this. Bad law, made for the wrong reasons and forced onto the statute books in dubious circumstances will never be respected.

If the government breaks its promise to deal with the hunting issue on the basis of evidence then that is what will happen.

The government can still avoid such a ridiculous and damaging outcome. When the Hunting Bill ran out of time in the House of Lords it was blamed on the hereditary peers frustrating the will of the Commons.

In fact the Bill attracted the support of only 20 per cent of Labour members.

If the all the Tory, Liberal Democrat and hereditary peers hadn't even turned up a ban would still not have been carried. Worse still, the government was offered the chance of completing the Bill and refused.

By the government's own admission a hunting ban will be hard to enforce, and will fail to improve the plight of animals. It will damage communities and fragile economies and will be seen to be driven by prejudice not principle.

Rural people would welcome the eradication of cruelty, while retaining the proper opportunities to manage wildlife effectively.

We are about to discover if the government is driven by the desire to hour its commitment to the nation or its fear of offending Mr Tony Banks, a backbench MP from East London.

S Hart

Chief Executive

Countryside Alliance

Kennington Road

London