Fox hunter to stand trial under previous legislation

Myles O'Connor, 29, is charged with hunting a wild mammal, namely a fox, with dogs at Middlemoor Plantation at Hume near Kelso, on December 22, 2021.

Traditional fox hunting was banned in Scotland in 2002 but hunts, in some forms, are still permitted with dogs only allowed to be used to flush foxes from cover to waiting guns.

But just last week MSPs voted in favour of new legislation which limits hunting with packs of dogs north of the border.

The Scottish Government said The Hunting with Dogs Bill aims to close loopholes which allow the practice of killing wild animals, including foxes, rabbits and hares.

It replaces a previous law passed in 2002 and means hunters will no longer be able to use packs of hounds to flush out wild mammals unless they have a licence.

The original legislation allowed dogs to flush foxes as long as they were then shot, and providing the hunt was to protect livestock or ground-nesting birds.

But animal rights organisations claimed the law was being regularly exploited.

The new law means no more than two dogs can be used to stalk or flush out animals from cover unless a licence has been granted. The law will also prohibit trail hunting where dogs follow an animal-based scent.

Meanwhile, O'Connor, who gave an address near Melrose, and is one of the leading members of the Buccleuch Hunt, is charged under the current legislation, and his trial is expected to be one of the last before the new laws come into force.

He has pleaded not guilty to the charge and will stand trial at Jedburgh Sheriff Court on February 14.