Beaufort Hunt issued with Community Resolution
Little more than a slap on the wrist by Wiltshire Police?
Wiltshire Police has issued the Beaufort Hunt with a Community Resolution due to out of control hounds, just weeks after the Heythrop Hunt received a Community Resolution for the exact same issue.
According to Wiltshire Hunt Saboteurs, Beaufort staff are required to attend "awareness training" as part of the resolution - quite a come down for a privileged hunt based out of the Badminton Estate and which both Charles and Camilla used to ride with.
The sabs reported that the police took action after the hunt chased two foxes during a meet in November. They stated:
"To add the Beaufort Hunt's many woes, we have heard today that Wiltshire Police has issued this hunt with a Community Resolution for out of control hounds which spilled out onto the road in front of an attending police car as they hunted a fox across a stream on 9th November 2024.
Hunt sabs called police after this fox (pictured) was hunted into Scots Farm Pinkney. The police arrived and the hunt refused to come out of the farm to talk to the officer, instead fleeing with the hounds back to Easton Grey. This little one made his escape in the meantime."
A second fox
This wasn't the end of the hunt's day, however, and hounds pursued yet another fox, despite police being at the scene. The sabs wrote:
"As the hounds approached the weir at Easton Grey, Cirencester Illegal Hunt Watch were already there waiting for the hounds. Meanwhile sabs from Wiltshire and Bath had told the officer where the hunt was headed and he drove down to meet them there. As he arrived a second fox had moments before broke across the stream and had ran in front of CIHW sabs who covered the scent and rated the arriving hounds.
"Just as the police car arrived the hounds all spilled into the road in front of the police. It was certainly a sight to behold. The second fox also escaped thanks to the quick actions of CIHW and the timely presence of the police officer ensuring it wasn’t pursued."
Not enough to deter hunts
When a similar Community Resolution was issued by Gloucestershire Police to the Heythrop in November, we wrote:
"A Community Resolution can be imposed for a low-level crime. It is, however, arguable as to whether it is low-level when hounds run riot on streets, presenting a danger to people in vehicles and family pets."
Although it is pleasing that police forces are taking some kind of action, such a 'punishment' is hardly going to be enough to deter hunts. Without facing any meaningful consequences, little will change. Attending 'awareness training' is somewhat laughable: after all, hunts will already be aware that it is illegal to hunt foxes, and that hounds should not be spilling onto roads.
We will have to see whether this move by Wiltshire Police is little more than a token gesture. After all, the force has a long history of doing very little to prevent hunts from carrying out their illegalities. The force's Police and Crime Commissioner is the obnoxious Philip Wilkinson: he is pro-hunt and once called sabs “black clad, balaclava-wearing thugs”. In early 2023 there was public outrage at the appointment of police officer Cheryl Knight into the force's Rural Crime Team: Knight had several connections to fox hunting, including field riding with the Beaufort Hunt, as well as attending one of the Avon Vale’s infamous Boxing Day meets. It took concerted campaigning and a mass protest outside their Devizes HQ for Wiltshire Police to finally put in place a framework with "key principles to ensure staff do not have personal links to hunts past or present..."
Change the Law
There clearly needs to be an urgent change in the law. Protect the Wild is urging the Labour government to stick to its manifesto promise and either strengthen the Hunting Act,or replace it with a brand new watertight law that would close all loopholes. We argue that any changes in legislation need to ensure that hunts are prosecuted for intentionally or recklessly hunting a mammal with dogs. Adding a reckless clause to the law will ensure that hunts could be more easily prosecuted for incidents like those mentioned in this article, where they run down roads as they chase wildlife.
Hunts need to be held to account far more effectively, and it's down to the new Labour government to finally make this happen.
Wiltshire Hunt Saboteurs can only continue to be in the field defending foxes if it has public support. You can donate to the group here.