I thank the proposers of the Bill for bringing it before the House. It is important to debate all these issues, even the issues that separate and divide us. Every year at the Sinn Féin Ard-Fheis we have an opportunity to discuss various motions and set out our party policy. That is where our position on this comes from. For many years we have had motions before Ard-Fheiseanna where it has been discussed. What normally happens is that various cumainn around the country discuss the motions in advance and have their debates. We then debate it at the Ard-Fheis and have a vote on it, and that sets our position. That is why we have the position we have in respect of this. When it comes to debate, of course there are different views from different people but at the same time we recognise that across the length and breadth of Ireland there are thousands of gun clubs in practically every parish in the country. The people involved in those are hunting and also involved in conservation and everything to do with the countryside, a tradition which sometimes goes back for many generations. Fox hunting on horseback is a tiny part of that. For most of them, the elite and landed gentry are a thing of the past. The people who are involved in that now are not of that vein. Certainly, that is my experience in my part of the country. Of course, we also recognise that there has to be strict regulation. Cruelty should not happen and should be stamped out at every opportunity. In my experience those involved in these activities do not go out with cruel intent. They go out mainly because of the satisfaction they get from being involved in the hunt. Often no horses are involved and they are on foot during the hunt. In many cases people engage in this because it is something they have done for generations in some cases. We accept that people have a genuine fear that if we start at one place and ban fox hunting, it will lead to something else and something else. That fear has been expressed by many people, particularly those involved in gun clubs around the country. Whether it is real or not, it is a fear they have and we have to recognise and acknowledge that as well. Many of us see the fox as a predator which is dangerous certainly for sheep and ground-nesting birds. Many of the people involved in the gun clubs are also involved in other conservation work. They often raise pheasants and let them out along with hen harriers and other ground-nesting birds as well. Of course, the fox is one of the serious predators in respect of that. Many of our farmers are asked not to mow their meadows to allow ground-nesting birds, particularly rare birds, to be able to evolve and develop, and to get them back into the countryside again where they are very much an endangered species. The fox is one of the key predators in respect of that, as are the pine marten and the mink, one of which is a protected species and another an invasive one. Work has to be done to get rid of them. It is the same thing with the fox. Many foxes are killed not at hunts but actually through lamping where a light is shone on foxes when they are out in the field. They stand and look back and have no sporting chance. It is a way in which there has to be control of an animal which may be beautiful to see but has a very dangerous element to it particularly when it comes to ground-nesting birds but also farm animals such as poultry and sheep out on the mountains. Of course, we have a decision to make on this and Sinn Féin has a position. That position comes from our Ard-Fheis where this is debated, discussed and set out. If that position changes in the future, it will change in the future. I do not see that happening because I see a groundswell of support from the vast majority of people around the country who recognise that this is something that has been there for a very long time. It is presented sometimes as being elitist, but that has not been the experience of most people. The majority of the Sinn Féin membership have voted on this and have made it very clear that they want to see this continued in a way that protects the environment, protects the animals and has at least a clear element of wildlife protection in respect of it. Hunting the fox is part of protecting other wildlife species. That is the piece that is missing for some people who do not understand fully. I thank the proposers of the Bill. We will not be supporting it. That is our position and we have a clear logic as to why that is our position.

Sentiment score: 0.05