Hunting industry claims to be minority ethnic group and seeks protection under Equality Act

The Equality Act was brought in to protect those who actually face discrimination

Hunters came together recently for a conference in Wiltshire to discuss how to save hunting. Their plan of action? To claim that hunters are a minority ethnic group, and as such need to be protected under the Equality Act 2010.

The event was organised by lobby group Hunting Kind, which aims to influence politicians and the law. The attendees, apparently, agreed a strategy: to deliver the case that as a "minority group" hunters should receive protections. The organisation said:

"This has been the culmination of just over 3 years work in the legal space. The initial stage was the scope and assessment of the minorities case under the Equality Act 2010. This was followed by evidence collection and fieldwork involving ethnographic study and research. A peer reviewed submission was then presented to a senior UK King's Counsel with expertise in human rights and the ECHR. This was reviewed, culminating in a legal opinion on our position, late last year. The end result was that we absolutely qualify to receive protections around our beliefs as part of a minority group."

Making a mockery of Equality Act

The Equality Act was brought in to protect those who actually face discrimination in society and the workplace. The nine protected characteristics under the Act are age; disability; gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership; pregnancy and maternity; race; religion or belief; sex; sexual orientation. The House of Commons Library states:

"The Act prohibits direct and indirect discrimination, and harassment and victimisation. It also prohibits discrimination in relation to something arising from a person’s disability, and creates a duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people."

Hunting Kind's assertion - that hunters should somehow gain protection under this Act - makes a mockery of the law, and is an insult to all those who actually face discrimination day to day. Hunters are often some of the most privileged people in society. Yet talking about the campaign, Hunting Kind's Ed Swales had the audacity to say to the Fieldsports Channel:

"Keir Starmer, in his position as Prime Minister, with a legal background, would, one hopes, understand the detail and not the nuance - the plain fact of the matter - that we are a minority ethnic group of British people that hunt."

This supposedly minority group - which consists mostly of rich, white men - has continued to hunt with dogs with impunity. We see hunters breaking the law week in, week out, despite the introduction of the Hunting Act in 2004. Swales himself admitted:

"We've had thousands of days' hunting, and absolutely - virtually - no prosecutions."

Incredibly, he used this statement to argue that hunters need to be protected under the Equality Act!

'Natural hunting'

Among all of this ridiculousness, Hunting Kind argues that it is protecting ‘natural hunting’. York Anti-Hunt League retorted:

"In reality, ‘natural hunting’ means flushing and chasing of foxes, hares, deer, and mink for as long as it takes until they are caught, ripped apart, and killed. Death is not instant, despite what is claimed, especially when using terriers and lurchers. And there is certainly nothing natural or legal about blocking badger setts and releasing bagged foxes!"

Not a chance

Hunting Kind concluded:

"We are confident that we will get this over the line, with your help and emerge from the fog of the last 2 decades with real hope for a brighter future."

It is very difficult to believe that the hunting industry will have any success as it tries to get itself represented as a minority under the Equality Act. After all, in 2009 we saw the Countryside Alliance (CA) challenging the UK's hunting ban by taking it all the way to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The CA argued that the ban impinged on the right to private life. Hunting Kind would do well to take note that the ECHR ruled that:

"The Court did not accept the applicants' argument that hunting amounts to a particular lifestyle which is so inextricably linked to their identity that to ban hunting would be to jeopardise the very essence of their identity."

Hunting Kind has stated that it will be keeping its followers updated about what to do next. Meanwhile, the British Hound Sports Association is preparing its national demonstration day on 14 September. This is its bid to convince both the public and MPs that trail hunting is a legal activity and not, in fact, a smokescreen to tear up foxes and other animals.

The actions of the hunting industry reek of desperation as it tries in vain to save hunting with dogs. Keir Starmer is unlikely to bow under this pressure. After all, as Swales has pointed out, Starmer knows the law well.

Starmer may, however, not go far enough when his government finally amends the Hunting Act. Protect the Wild is pushing for a proper ban on hunting, where no loopholes can be written into law. We argue that in order to do this, the government needs to scrap the Hunting Act completely and introduce a whole new law. Please read our Hunting of Mammals Bill, which - if introduced - would stop hunting in its tracks, and finally give wildlife much-needed protection from illegal hunting. Please support it and help us make it law. Join more than 120,000 people and add your signature to the petition here.

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