Confusion
reigns over hunting bill
GOVERNMENT ATTEMPTS to ban foxhunting
in England and Wales were in confusion earlier this week after
it emerged that there would not be a specific commitment to
bring forward an anti-hunting Bill in Wednesday's Queen's
Speech to Parliament.
Peter Hain, Leader of the Commons, promised "discussions"
on ways of achieving a ban in the face of renewed opposition
from the House of Lords, although his comments on GMTV’s
Sunday Programme were open to wide interpretation.
A Bill to introduce a licensing system for hunting, which
had been amended to introduce a complete ban on all hunting
with dogs, was blocked in the Lords last month.
It had been widely expected that the Government would re-introduce
the amended Bill and use the Parliament Act to overcome the
Lords opposition, after angry backbenchers demanded concerted
action.
Mr Blair was expected to indicate that the Government will
support a private member's Bill by an anti-hunting MP. However
a PMB would make it far less certain that a ban would reach
the statute book. Previous attempts to outlaw hunting through
private members' Bills have all failed.
The Government is concerned that a hunting Bill could run
into stiff opposition in the Lords, delaying legislation on
asylum, student finance and anti-terrorism.
According to Mr Hain, PM Tony Blair is said to have an "iron
determination" to resolve the hunting issue and to move
on quickly to removing the remaining 92 hereditary peers from
the Lords.
Arrival
He
has told ministers that the Lords must not just be allowed
to veto measures for political reasons, and believes that
Michael Howard’s arrival as Tory leader has encouraged
Conservative peers to act in an obstructionist way.
Foxhunting is unlikely to be one of the Bills officially
mentioned in the Queen’s Speech on the Wednesday opening
of the new session. It will be one of the eight or so measures
that are planned but not included in the official list.
Ministers were expected to indicate during Wednesday that
the Bill would be brought back.
Mr Hain said on GMTV: "It is very important for the
future of our democracy and our constitutional stability
that the House of Lords recognises that its proper role
is as a revising and scrutinising chamber, not a vetoing
chamber. The Lords must not be allowed to frustrate important
legislation bringing extra security, opportunities, democracy
and greater economic stability."
Mr Hain went on to accuse the Lords of abandoning the hunting
Bill. They had not tried to amend it. "This cannot
be allowed to continue. It needs to be resolved —
we need closure on it — and we are seeking to work
out how we can achieve that.
"Just abandoning a Bill, a Bill carried by repeated
big majorities in the Commons, reflecting general election
manifesto commitments, backed by the people in the polling
stations … is a situation which is unprecedented and
cannot be allowed simply to stand still."
Even if the Government were to steamroller anti-hunting
legislation onto the statute books, any such legislation
could be delayed by a series of legal challenges in both
the British and European courts by pro-hunting supporters.
A campaign of mass civil disobedience has also been promised
by hunters, including taking part in a number of illegal
hunts, defying the Government directly.
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