So, it turns out that the SNP weren’t that bothered about the plight of foxes after all. Back in July, you might remember, David Cameron was forced to backtrack on his plan for a parliamentary vote on relaxing the hunting ban, after the SNP decided to vote against any changes. This, of course, came after Nicola Sturgeon wrote in February:
‘the SNP have a long-standing position of not voting on matters that purely affect England — such as fox hunting south of the border, for example — and we stand by that.’
But now we hear that just a month after blocking Cameron’s proposed changes, the SNP received a £10,000 donation from the ‘Political Animal Lobby’, an animal rights – and naturally anti-hunting – group, who have given vast amounts to the Labour Party in the past. So what was the real reason behind the SNP’s decision to renege on their not-voting-on-hunting statement? An overwhelming desire to annoy Cameron by forcing him to U-turn? A sudden fit of morals, believing that relaxing the ban would increase the suffering of foxes? Or, perhaps, the thought of ten grand winging its way to the party coffers?
It could have been a combination of any of these factors, although Sturgeon herself admitted that it was ‘less to do with fox hunting’, and more to making David Cameron ‘respect’ the SNP.
Britain’s best politics newsletters
You get two free articles each week when you sign up to The Spectator’s emails.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Comments
Join the debate, free for a month
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first month free.
UNLOCK ACCESS Try a month freeAlready a subscriber? Log in