Lord Burns

18th February 2000

Dear Sir

I enclose our submission to your inquiry.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of further help, or if you would like to visit us for a day's beagling in connection with your deliberations

Yours faithfully

Simon Curling

The Blean Beagles were founded in 1909. They were a present to Miss Betty Dawes, then a 9 year old girl, by her father Captain E S Dawes. Miss Dawes subsequently became Mrs. Betty McKeever and remained as sole master of the pack until her death in 1990. Mrs. McKeever lived and farmed at Waterham Farm, Hernhill for over 60 years and in addition to her record breaking Mastership of the Blean Beagles was known for an encyclopedic knowledge of both the countryside and life itself. Since 1990 there has been a joint Mastership comprising mainly beaglers who learnt their beagling craft as children from Mrs. McKeever. One of her greatest passions was encouraging youth and she did this both directly and indirectly via Shaftesbury Homes.

The Blean Beagles hunt an area stretching from Sittingbourne to the Isle of Thanet and down to Dover. The countryside is varied with the marshes of the North Kent Coast, the Isle of Sheppey and the Isle of Thanet, the orchards between Faversham and Sittingbourne, the wooded and arable areas of the North Downs and the rolling arable areas between Dover and Canterbury.

Our supervising body, the Association of Masters of Harriers and Beagles, requires us to ensure that our hunt country is hunted fairly and equally. We operate in a comparatively densely populated area with the city of Canterbury, the large urban conurbation of the Isle of Thanet and the towns of Sittingbourne, Sheerness and Faversham within the country. There are several other large towns lying along the coastal fringes. In addition the M2 motorway and A2 and A229 trunk roads run through our country along with several railway lines. In the interests of public safety we cannot therefore hunt certain areas of our country but the balance is hunted evenly. We must obtain the permission of landowners before crossing their land and the overwhelming majority approached, by both ownership and acreage are happy to grant permission. Several of them welcome us with a drinks etc before hunting and provide tea following the day.

We hunt on approximately 40 days a season for about 3 hours. Our season starts in late September when we hunt one day a week in the morning. By late October we move onto hunting in the afternoons. At Christmas we move onto 2 days a week and continue until the end of March, with the occasional 3-day week, when hunting ends for the season. Our usual hunting days are Saturday and Wednesday.

The Blean country has a good stock of hares. It is a very rare that we have a blank day i.e. find no hare. Beagling provides probably the best way of monitoring the hare population. We are able to draw clear correlations between agricultural and other countryside activities and the hare population. Thus intensive agricultural activities, typically the cultivation in the early autumn, will cause hares to move away from fields. However revisiting the same area during the winter will find good stocks of hares who return once things quieten down. Variations in hare density are found across our country and these appear to have a similar cause. Thus on the Isle of Sheppey where hare populations seem especially high there is a low fox population. This is borne out by the good hare population found on those areas of the mainland where the fox population is closely controlled. On the other hand our lowest levels of hares appear on the marshes next to Sittingbourne where there is a very high fox population. There is also a significant effect in certain areas from poaching gangs who use lurchers to run down hares, often at night. There are of course several other factors affecting hare population including habitat, weather conditions, food availability and disturbance by human activity. It is however the removal of leverets (young hares) by foxes that seems to have the most significant effect by disrupting the life cycle. During the course of a season we see approximately 300 hares. Of these we actively hunt about 100 hares. We typically catch between 15 and 20 hares per season. It is likely that a number of these are suffering disease or injury. Beagling seems to have no discernable effect on hare population. If not caught the hare escapes without injury.

Hunting is a regulated sport. A days hunting is under the control of the huntsman who has control of the hounds and is responsible for the conduct of the day. He directs the whippers-in and the followers. The whippers-in also wear the hunt uniform and are there to assist the huntsman. Their role is varied and includes assisting the huntsman with hunting but also, and more importantly in our country, ensuring that we operate in a safe and controlled manner. Thus whippers-in will be placed to prevent hounds from nearing a danger area such as a main road or railway, or from entering on land that has not been cleared for hunting. We seek to ensure that we only go where we have permission. In the event that hounds trespass onto land where we have not obtained permission they will be stopped and we will leave. In the unlikely event damage is caused we report this to the landowner and arrange whatever repairs are required. To meet the possibility of a major accident we carry substantial public liability insurance. The Association of Masters of Harriers and Beagles who operate a rulebook supervise our activities. They dictate a framework within which we operate and impose penalties if we transgress.

We have 15 couple of hounds. These are kenneled at the West Street Tickham Foxhound kennels near Faversham. A kennel man is employed to look after our hounds. Were hunting to be abolished he would be made redundant. We support the local economy in a number of ways. Our hound van is taxed via the village Post Office and it is repaired at the village garage. We use a vet in the nearby village of Teynham only 6 or 7 minutes drive from the kennels. Our feeding requirements for the hounds provide a stock removal service to farmers who would otherwise face problems in disposal of dead animals. Our meets are often at public houses, and we may well return there after hunting, providing additional trade. We operate a number of social functions, supporting village halls by hiring their facilities. Whilst none of these activities may in itself make or break the individual, company or firm supported removal by abolishing hunting can only make it harder for them to survive and thus contribute to their closure or failure.

We run a number of activities throughout the year to raise funds. These include a Burns Night dance and a Hunt Ball both of which attract substantial numbers. During the summer we arrange a Horse & Dog Show that is well supported by local riding clubs and horse and pony owners. In conjunction with a local greyhound track we have run monthly race nights to provide a social get together. An annual Wine & Wisdom evening is held along with a Puppy Show at the kennels when year old hounds are shown to our members, supporters, farmers and friends. Subscribers, who range in age from 5 to 85 and in occupation from coal miner to former MP, with many others along the way, directly support the hunt. Beagling provides an ample opportunity for people from vastly differing backgrounds to meet on an equal scale and to enjoy their common sport.

The staff and followers of the Blean Beagles are honest law-abiding members of society and although in common with most other groups in life there are a few motoring offences they do not have any other convictions between them. They have respect for the laws and customs of our country. Unlike several nearby packs of hounds the Blean Beagles have generally escaped the attentions of Hunt Saboteurs. However when we have had a visit the effect is unpleasant in the extreme. The saboteurs generally wear balaclava helmets and a dark paramilitary style uniform, presumably to avoid identification by the police and also to present an intimidating appearance. They often carry staves or similar and carry sprays which they direct at the hounds in order to disrupt their sense of smell. This latter policy seems odd for alleged animal lovers. We are subjected to stream of verbal abuse that, perhaps revealingly, has little to do with animals as such but is purely personal. Our policy is non-confrontational and we adopt the motto turn the other cheek. This has generally enabled us to avoid direct physical confrontation and no member of our hunt has ever been cautioned or arrested by the Police, let alone charged. This is despite physical attacks being made on hunt staff by saboteurs.

Much has been made of the alleged cruelty in hunting and all manner of emotive abuse is directed at those who participate in hunting. Everyone I know who follows our beagles is a rational and intelligent human being. Many are highly educated whilst others, although lacking formal qualification are nonetheless knowledgeable, practical and sensible people. I suspect that we have all considered our conscience at some stage regarding hunting. I know, from many years personal experience, that the moment of death for a hare is momentary. It is certainly a swifter and less cruel death than the fish at the end of a hook or the animal waiting in the slaughterhouse. It is suggested that hunting leaves the quarry exhausted and in such poor shape that it cannot survive. There is little evidence to support this view and it is based on tests on animals that are already dead or in captivity. There is however evidence to show that there is little or no long-term effect. 80 years ago the then Mid Kent Staghounds hunted a carted deer. The animal, which rejoiced in the name of Dolly, was kept at the kennels and taken to the meet. Having been hunted by hounds she was taken home again at the end of each day. There is no evidence of hares being found having died of shock or exhaustion and no evidence that there is any long-term effect on a hare from hunting. The hare has adapted over 1000's of years and it is well equipped to outwit its pursuers. The low ratio that we catch supports this.

To me and the followers of our hunt the unrivalled access to the countryside and the spectacle of hounds hunting are one of the most important things in our lives. Many of those who call for a ban on hunting have little or no knowledge of the subject or have other motives in mind. Other supporters of a ban have the sincere view that it is wrong to kill an animal. We are rational and, we believe, compassionate human beings. We respect and recognize the views of those who believe that it is wrong to kill an animal but we do not share them. We do not, however, seek to impose our wishes on their lifestyle and yet many people seek to do just that to the hunting fraternity. A ban on hunting will lead to loss of hunt staff jobs together with a loss of income to rural areas and possibly further job losses or business closures. There will be no significant improvement in animal welfare. The majority of the population of this country accepts through activities such as meat eating that the killing of animals by mankind is justifiable. There is thus in our view no reason to ban hunting on moral grounds. Our democratic system means that those who chose to hunt should continue to have the freedom to make that choice for themselves.

Simon Curling

18th February 2000

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Date uploaded to site 30 May 2000