SAT FEB 19TH
FOX INN, STOURTON
This was the first Saturday meet after the ban came into force alarge crowd of supporters on foot , car and horse came to show support for hunting. This day was not the end of hunting ,it is not the end of the Albrighton Woodland Hunt but it is the begining of the end of the hunting act. Hounds set off for a day in the woods north of the meet, at the end of the day the feeling was not one of loss but of determination to see this act repealed and hunting restored. BOXING DAY
HAGLEY HALL, HAGLEY
MON 27TH DEC
A large crowd of well wishers came to support the AWH at their traditional boxing day meet by kind invitation of Lord & Lady Cobham. Hunt chairman Richard Follis, South Staffs MP Patrick Cormack, Lord Cobham and Peter Swann MFH addressed the crowd. With 121 mounted followers and two thousand on foot clearly demonstrated their support for hunting and their disappoval at this governments unjust law.Hounds moved off to stop at the French hen and Fountain pubs for refeshments, sadly the over night frost meant that it was unsafe to hunt as the ground was too hard.
Make a date in your diary for next year. Boxing day ,Hagley Hall 11am.
POLICING THE BAN
Home secretary David Blunket has stated that money that was allocated to deal with hunt saboteurs can now be used to bring hunts to the courts. Warnings started to come from within the police force that there was a unease about enforcing a ban on a section of the comunity who are pro police and law abiding. Concern about financing actions against hunts could cost £30 million and problems with how do you go about arresting a large group of people have also been mentioned. If you are given advice from high ranking policemen and women it would be sensible to listen to them, but this is labour we are talking about!
What Blunket has failed to take into account is that sabs will now go out and hit pheasant shoots which will need policing due to the sabs pressence. Hunts have never needed a police pressence it it only when the violent sabs arrive that THEY need policing. This ban does not make their activites ilegal and they will continue their campaign against shooting. So you will need police to keep the shooters and sabs appart and even more police to deal with hunters. All this taking policemen off the streets where drugs, robbery, violence and drunkeness are a problem. If the police have not got anything better to do like deal with any of the above then come and chase a few hunters round the countryside! Tax payers money well spent.
HUNTING BAN
The long drawn out sorry saga of this governments handling of hunting climaxed in a shameful display of bigotry and hatred you will ever witness.It confirmed to everyone in this country and the rest of the world that we have a very sorry excuse of a government. Blairs pathetic attempts to sway his back benchers convinced nobody. His government put this bill in motion, and his government must answer for its actions. As for Alun Micheals contribution to the debate[if thats what you could call it] was gob smacking, how anyone can come up with so many
"factuaL InAcuRices" without drawing breath just went to show what a useless article he is. How he has maintained his job is a mystery, Blair should have sacked him long ago. The house of lords gave the commons a suitable licence system for hunting this was rejected out of hand, the bleating of Blair and Micheal over giving us 18 months to refocus the hunts activites was totally transparent in an attempt to ward off any human rights claim, and in the vain hope that hunt supporters would not disrupt the next election[boy have they miss judged that one]. In the comming weeks hunts will be taking advice as to the way forward, legal challeges are allready in the system. Practical measures are been looked at [i know the police moniter this site for info...hi Bob] so i will not go into detail here yet. There is of course the next election, prospective candidates need to go out and canvas and we will be waiting to say hello! This is bad law. It is unjust law. It is unenforcable law and we will never accept it. Fight on.
FOSTER PROTEST IN KIDDY
Hunt supporters from all over the midlands came to Kidderminster to greet Micheal Foster who was too address a local labour party meeting held at the Kidderminster Harriers social club on Thursday 23rd Sept at 8pm. A group of 200 supporters unfortunatly could not greet Foster as he was told to keep away by the police who had now turned up in force, some in riot gear! A delegation went inside when a member of the club staff opened a fire exit? but left when asked to do so by the police offiers. After a while the supporters left singing "were all off to brighton" .Yet again those voting for this unjust law will not face those who it will effect. A calling card was left "sorry to have missed you ,will call again." see you soon Micheal.Thank you to everyone who made the effort to attend.Well done on a peaceful good natured but determined protest.
LONDON PROTEST
Wed 15th september will go down in history there is no doubt about that. We saw the extraordinary scenes of five hunt protestors entering the commons chambers. They have been condemed for their actions by some, but what we all have to ask is what has this government done to make law abideing decent folk take such drastic actions to get their point across. Alun Micheal promised a bill on hunting based on principle and evidence, that promise was broken to provide the back bench zelots with a little peice of class hatred and bigotry to bring them together for the election expected in May. No wonder we witnessed the events that took place on Wednesday. This bill has nothing to do with animal welfare it has even less to do with foxes, it is driven by hatred of people not compassion for animals.
