The shameful legacy of Tony Blair’s Hunting Act

Most laws enacted nearly 20 years ago become uncontroversial with the passage of time. The Hunting Act, though, is not one of them. As hunts gather today for their traditional Boxing Day meet, the latest chapter in this ongoing story involves fresh claims about Labour and past ‘cash for commitments’. Central to these is the allegation that the pledge to ban hunting with hounds in the 1997 party manifesto was effectively purchased by a £1 million donation.

Shortly before the election, the Labour party received that figure from Political Animal Lobby, now known as Animal Survival International. It has always been a fair assumption that such a large sum had a significant impact on Labour policy, particularly on hunting. But until recently we could not say that definitively. Now, however, we can. First, Peter Mandelson admitted earlier this month on a Times podcast that the donation was ‘pretty transactional’ and put the party under ‘some sort of pressure’ over the manifesto.