In March this year, in Holderness, Beverley and Holderness MP Graham Stuart launched the CLA (Country Land and Business Association) national campaign to combat hare-coursing and ultimately put an end to this crime. The campaign is now moving forward by holding an awareness event in Parliament, sponsored by Graham, on Tuesday 16 October. It will be an opportunity for decision-makers to learn more about this issue and what they can do to battle it.
Graham Stuart MP commented: “I am looking forward to welcoming to the event my fellow MPs from across the country, Police and Crime Commissioners, and Beverley and Holderness constituents.
“Hare coursing is a rural crime where dogs are used to chase, catch and kill hares, with gambling on the outcome common practice. The crime usually starts after harvest when large areas of arable land are cleared of crops, making it easier to travel across fields.
“The perpetrators of this crime often cause thousands of pounds of damage to land and crops, and create a culture of fear by using sinister tactics, threats and intimidation when caught in the act.
“Raising awareness of and supporting this campaign is important as there is much more we have to do: we need to highlight this crime with Police and Crime Commissioners across the country, make sure all MPs in the affected areas know how they can support the campaign, and we need to get out the message to everyone in rural communities that they can help too by reporting sightings of strangers behaving suspiciously.
“We expect Home Office Minister Victoria Atkins MP to attend and are actively pursuing a meeting with her to discuss how we tackle this issue together.
“It is my hope that along with the CLA, other MPs and support from rural communities across the UK we can work together to put an end to hare-coursing".
