Fitzwilliam Hunt have appeal rejected: Hunting - what the law says

While using hounds to kill foxes is forbidden by law, there are ways hunting is legally allowed in the UK - including with a bird of prey.

By The Newsroom

Published 10th May 2019, 10:40 BST

Master of the Hounds, George Adams, leads The Fitzwilliam Hunt Boxing Day meet out of Stilton ENGEMN00120131226132849

George Adams claimed he was using hounds to flush out the fox for a bird of prey to dispatch the animal.

The Hunting Act (2004) provides a number of exemptions to allow hunting of mammals.

The law states:

Falconry:

Flushing a wild mammal from cover is exempt hunting if undertaken—

(a)for the purpose of enabling a bird of prey to hunt the wild mammal, and

(b)on land which belongs to the hunter or which he has been given permission to use for the purpose by the occupier or, in the case of unoccupied land, by a person to whom it belongs.

More: Fitzwilliam Huntsman loses appeal over illegal hunting