HUNT supporters were jubilant last night after learning that the Bill to ban hunting with dogs has fallen foul of Parliament’s joint committee on human rights.

MPs and peers on the committee have demanded clarification from ministers on two key points before clearing the Bill of a possible infringement.

They want the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to explain how it can justify banning hunting on private property without challenge from owners under the right to enjoy their own land.

The committee has also demanded further details of the way that compensation will be offered to those whose livelihoods are lost or curtailed under a hunting ban, from dog-breeders to saddle-makers.

Committee members, who scrutinise all Bills to make sure that they comply with the European Convention on Human Rights, want Defra to reply by the end of the week.

The Bill ran out of time in the Lords but the committee has been studying the legislation as amended by the Commons. It is expected to return during the next parliamentary session even though it may not be in the Queen’s Speech.

A committee spokesman said: “Our questions are to do with infringement of private property and the implications of the scale of the ban. Members want to know whether it is justifiable to restrict what people do on private property in the public interest.”

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