How many people have (rightly) thrown their hands up in horror at the injustice of a PELs system that criminalises landlords and musicians for simply expressing their culture, for free, and for the simple pleasure of it.

I must admit that you do have a point. Because (what became) the Licensing Act 2003 was started in the House of Lords, it was possible and we did nearly manage (but for the treachery and stupidity of Lib Dem peers) to get the whole thing thrown-out.

The hunting bill however, was started in the Commons and even if (as looks likely) the Lords reject it - The Parliament Act can be used to make it law.

So hooray that the 'hoorays' have lost but it is a questionable way of doing it.

I don't entirely agree about the traditional right to inflict needless crulty - it would seem that there are many such questionable practices that folk have chosen to give-up. The great shame is that it was even thought necessary to have to propose banning this one.

The fight, I suspect was probably about all of the many frustrations from sections of our still divided nation - rather than that hunting with dogs was really thought to be that important. The importance of it came with the attempt to impose it. The term 'bloody minded' comes to mind........