AN animal welfare charity has attacked a national trail hunting day as a 'smokescreen' deployed by 'blood sport apologists' for killing foxes in defiance of a ban.
The National Trail Hunting Day took place at Bow Wood, Upton Snodsbury, near Worcester on Saturday, attended by hundreds of people, including young families, as defenders vowed to fight to protect their way of life.
However, the League Against Cruel Sports has slammed the day as an attempt to deceive the public, police and government – and convince them the activity isn’t just a smokescreen for the chasing and killing of foxes despite the ban.
Attack by League Against Cruel Sports
This interpretation was refuted by the British Hound Sports Association which branded claims made by the League as 'absurd', levelled at them by activists who 'simply don't understand rural life'. Meanwhile, Worcestershire Hunt also hit back, saying it had acted lawfully since the ban came into force over 20 years ago.
The event was held this Saturday, October 17 as part of a “Newcomers to Trail Hunting Week” and was organised by the Countryside Alliance and British Hound Sports Association (BHSA).
The four flagship hunts included the one in Worcestershire, hosted by the Worcestershire Hunt, with others held on the same day in Northumberland, Suffolk and Devon.
Data from Hunt Saboteurs Association
Figures compiled by the Hunt Saboteurs Association show that six fox hunts and three hare hunts that fall under the jurisdiction of the BHSA governing bodies have been convicted of illegal hunting since the beginning of last year.
New League Against Cruel Sport figures show that 53 foxes have been seen being chased during the most recent cub hunting season starting in August 2026.
READ MORE: The 2025 Boxing Day hunts in-and-around Worcestershire
The League published figures earlier this year showing 488 foxes were reported being pursued during the last fox and cub hunting season ending in March 2026.
The same report showed that the vast majority of hunts never even bothered to lay a trail.
Just 23 or 3.7 per cent of the 624 hunt meets reported across England and Wales last season contained evidence of a trail being laid, and within those 23 reports where a trail was actually laid, there was still evidence of 22 foxes being chased.
Emma Slawinski, chief executive of the League Against Cruel Sports, said: “National Trail Hunting Day is a cynical attempt to hide from the public, criminal justice system and government that fox hunting is still taking place despite the ban.
“We get reports of hundreds of foxes being chased every season and this is just the tip of the iceberg as this is just from the hunts being monitored.
READ MORE: Pictures: Worcestershire Boxing Day Hunt 2025 in Droitwich
“What happens on these trail hunting days is in stark contrast to the brutality being shown by fox hunts up and down the UK which are routinely chasing and killing foxes as they did before the ban.”
Polling commissioned by the League Against Cruel Sports and carried out independently by FindOutNow with further analysis by Electoral Calculus in March/April 2024 found that 76 per cent of the public supported stronger fox hunting laws, with only seven per cent disagreeing.
The League says a 'clear majority of voters in rural as well as urban areas across the country backed new laws to stop foxes being chased by hounds and killed, with 70 per cent of people in the countryside supporting the proposal'.
Ms Slawinski added: “We are calling on the government to act and fulfil its pledge to ban trail hunting, bringing forward legislation at least by the next parliamentary session.
READ MORE: Worcestershire Hunt's warm welcome on trail hunt hunting day
“We also need stronger hunting laws which contain a powerful deterrent in the form of prison sentences for those that break the law, a new mechanism for preventing hunts claiming their kills are accidental, and the removal of all the loopholes in the Hunting Act.”
The League is urging the public to take part in an action, by contacting their MP and calling for stronger hunting laws.
Role of former Worcester MP in ban
The ban has roots in Worcestershire. It was former Labour MP Mike Foster who represented Worcester between 1997 and 2010 who brought a private bill which laid the foundation for the Hunting Act 2004 which made it illegal to use a pack of dogs to chase and kill wild animals, including foxes.
A spokesperson for the British Hound Sports Association, hunting’s governing body, said: “National Trail Hunting Day was a fantastic day with thousands of people across the country witnessing first-hand the importance of trail hunting to the rural economy and community. It is absurd to portray such a day, bringing rural communities together, as an attempt to deceive the public and once again shows many so-called activists simply don't understand rural life.
“As a lobbying and advocacy body, LACS are entitled to their opinion, but the facts speak for themselves. More than 10,000 days of hunting take place across England and Wales each season, and the League's selective figures simply do not substantiate its sweeping allegations of widespread illegal activity. Reports of foxes being seen or allegedly chased do not, in themselves, establish that a criminal offence has taken place.
“The Hunting Act has been in force for more than 20 years and can be enforced where wrongdoing occurs, as the conviction figures demonstrate. The British Hound Sports Association is the governing body for recognised hunts, setting clear standards and rules, with the Hound Sports Regulatory Authority responsible for disciplinary matters and holding members accountable."
A spokesperson from the Worcestershire Hunt said: “The Worcestershire Hunt has operated in accordance with the Hunting Act since it came into force in 2005 and remains fully committed to conducting lawful trail hunting activities. We were delighted to welcome members of the public to our National Trail Hunting Day event, providing an opportunity to meet our hounds and hunt staff, learn more about trail hunting and see for themselves how we operate.”
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