The government has opened its consultation on banning trail hunting.

Please sign the e-lobby to send a message to the government to oppose the ban and join the Future for Hunting campaign to stay up to date.

While it may have been all smiles for the King’s Speech (in which many of you may have noted there was no mention of the government’s ridiculous proposal to ban trail hunting), the knives were being sharpened, and now we will see how the latest episode of political psychodrama will unfold, with potential leadership challenges from Wes Streeting and Angela Rayner being reported.

The Countryside Alliance has submitted detailed evidence to the Labour Rural Research Group’s inquiry into the future of the rural economy, warning that too much national policy is still designed around urban assumptions rather than the realities of countryside life and business.

Friday 8 May saw dreadful results for Labour from the previous day’s elections in Wales, Scotland and local authorities across England. Wales has ejected Labour from government in favour of Plaid Cymru, and its former First Minister from the Senedd; the SNP – so recently reeling from the party finance scandal, the still-mysterious resignation of Nicola Sturgeon and the brief premiership of Humza Yousaf – stood strong in Scotland; and in England, the governing party lost nearly 1,500 councillors and control of 38 councils, primarily to a surging Reform UK.

The countryside faces its greatest challenge for a generation. Become a member today and help us fight damaging legislation, defend rural freedoms and protect our rural way of life.