On 24th January 2023, in a landmark moment, the Scottish Government ended the ‘sport’ of fox hunting!

Under the Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Bill, which Parliament passed, there will now be a two-dog limit for flushing wild mammals to guns, effectively putting an end to fox hunting packs. The Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Act 2023 will come into force 3rd October 2023.

 

The legislation will also ban trail hunting, which has been used as a loophole to allow fox hunting to continue in England.

"This is a monumental day for Scotland. For twenty years the Scottish public have made it very clear that they want a real ban on the cruel ‘sport’ of foxhunting and now, after decades of tireless campaigning from ourselves and like-minded organisations and individuals, we finally have that ban".
OneKind Director, Bob Elliot

We will scrutinise the activity of the hunts to ensure that the legislation is effective and that there are no loopholes to be exploited.

 

Media coverage highlights

Recent media coverage of our campaign to ban fox hunting include articles in The Times, STV News and The National.

Today we have a positive step towards wild animals finally obtaining the respect and basic protections that they deserve.

L.Wilson, 'MSPs pass new Scottish fox hunting bill 20 years on from ban', STV News, 25 January 2023

Unnecessary exemptions

While we welcome the strengthening of the legislation to put an end to the ‘sport’ of fox hunting, we are not supportive of the exceptions to the Bill, that will:

• Allow the use of two dogs to flush wild mammals in certain circumstances, or use more than two dogs under licence in exceptional circumstances.
• Allow the use of one dog underground, to try to flush foxes out.

However, it will never be legal to chase and kill a wild mammal using a dog.

OneKind has been campaigning for a fox hunting ban for decades.

 

Some of our more recent highlights include:

• Our 2022 For the Foxes march through central Edinburgh. 
• Responding to the Scottish Parliament’s calls for views on the Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Bill 2022 and assisting our supporters to also do so.
• Aiding our supporters in responding to the Scottish Government’s consultation on proposed changes to Protection of Wild Mammals Scotland) Act 2002 (the foxhunting ‘ban’).
• Exposing Forestry Land Scotland for granting permission to fox hunting foot packs to hunt on public land in 2020 & 2021 and gaining media coverage on our exposé.
• Our fox hunting march and rally, in 2018, with the League Against Cruel Sports and IFAW. Around 1000 people marched with us and we were supported by celebrities Ricky Gervais, Bill Oddie, Chris Packham and Peter Egan.
• Our 2017 fox hunting rally in the lead up for the 2017 General Election, following comments from the Prime Minister that she would give Parliament a free vote on fox hunting.

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Some campaigns, such as our work to end the sport of fox hunting, can be lengthy. Donations are vital in providing the resources we need to continue working on these campaigns for the long term. You can support our ongoing work for wildlife and other animals by donating today.

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