LAST weekend marked the start of the hunting season, and what could possibly be the last opening while the Hunting Act is in force.

The reality is the Hunting Act is a bad law that has failed.

Opinion polls conducted by independent organisations have consistently shown that less than three in 10 people think that the Hunting Act is working.

The ban on hunting was driven by class politics and prejudice, not animal welfare or wildlife management, which is why the law is unworkable.

Tim Bonner, Countryside Alliance