Cook and Jay support hunting
12 May 2000
‘Cook and Jay support hunting’
By FWi staff
HUNT supporters believe Robin Cook and Baroness Jay have helped to head off attempts by backbench Labour MPs to abolish hunting with hounds.
Leaked documents appear to show that the Countryside Alliance considers that it has powerful allies in the Cabinet, reports The Daily Telegraph.
This could prove embarrassing for the Foreign Secretary and the leader of the House of Lords, says the newspaper.
A letter from Lord Kimball, deputy chairman of the Alliance, confirms that it hopes to delay the threat of legislation, and keep the issue out of Labours next election manifesto.
The letter to Alliance chairman John Jackson, says the group has succeeded to date, “thanks to Robin Cook”.
Minutes of a meeting of the alliances rural committee says it was due to support from Lady Jay that the terms of reference of the inquiry by Lord Burns were widened.
The Burns inquiry, looking at the impact of a ban on hunting, is due to report on 31 May.
On Thursday (11 May) Lord Kimball told The Telegraph that he had not said anything new.
- The Daily Telegraph 12/05/2000 page 8