That this house would ban all blood sports as a means of entertainment

First of all, as this is an international site and foxhunting is not common outside the British Isles, please allow me to enlighten those voters who may be unfamiliar with it. To start off with, my opponent, and other advocates of foxhunting, describe foxhunting as a sport, but we have to ask ourselves if this is really an appropriate term. Consider, if you will, the following sporting contest: Commentator: "Hello rugby fans and welcome to what promises to be a thrilling afternoon of sport. Playing left to right, with an average weight of 266lbs and an average height of 6'3" are fifteen of the most formidable rugby players in the world. They are, of course, the World Cup winning New Zealand All Blacks. . http://www.youtube.com... And their opposition today, representing South Chelmsford Under-12's reserve team, is young Cedric Taylor who is 4'1" tall and weighs in at 77lbs and who is all on his own. Ah, bless him. So, we are only minutes away from kick-off now and the crowd are going wild with excitement…but wait, what's this? The All Blacks manager is complaining to the referee. He thinks the match is too one-sided. He's asking for permission for his Maori warriors to take to the field on horseback. And he wants to be allowed to set a pack of braying hounds on the young Chelmsford lad as well. Well, the referee has agreed to the All Blacks' requests and he's blown whistle to start the game. The New Zealander's are now charging down the field, their horses' hooves churning the mud as they gallop at full pelt over the soft turf. Meanwhile, the hounds have been released and are closing in on young Cedric who, with ball in hand, is literally running for his life. And now the dogs are upon him. They are tearing him limb from limb as the All Blacks dismount and celebrate their opponent's agonising death with a victory war dance. Well, viewers, even the most loyal South Chelmsford Under-12's reserve team fans would have to admit the mighty All Blacks thoroughly deserved that emphatic win. More sport follows this programme when we cross to Ireland where some over-privileged toffs hope to set their dogs on a defenceless wild animal and watch them rip it into a thousand pieces. But who knows? Perhaps their quarry will manage to overpower the hounds and kill them all before somehow forcing the upper-class horse riders to dismount so that he can maul them all to death? Who can say, but we shall all find out after these messages…" Really, ladies and gentleman, for a pastime to be called a "sport", both sides have to have a chance of winning. Who has ever heard of a fox wining a foxhunt? No, foxhunting isn't a sport – it's just the cruel and wanton destruction of wildlife for the pleasure of barbaric aristocrats and their snobby chums and we shouldn't dignify this despicable activity by calling it a sport. Now, this is what foxhunting is really about: These are the foxhunters… . http://cache.eb.com... . http://www.realca.co.uk... …and these are the henchmen they employ to keep hunt monitors away: . http://www.realca.co.uk... . http://www.realca.co.uk... …and if you want to see how the fox suffers when he is caught, click on the link below and follow the directions to the foxhunting gallery. However, please be aware that you may find some of the images disturbing. . http://www.banbloodsports.com... Foxhunting is now banned now in England, Scotland and Wales, but remains legal in Ireland; my opponent's home country. Prior to the ban, the foxhunters argued, as my opponent has, that foxhunting is necessary to protect farmers' chickens. Guess what? Since the UK ban came into force in 2004, the foxes have not been slaughtering chickens en masse. Why not? Because some bright spark came across a revolutionary, high-tech solution to keep the foxes from the poultry. And the name of this incredible new discovery? Well, prepare to be amazed - announcing the all-singing, all-dancing: chicken wire fencing… . http://hoaryredpoll.files.wordpress.com... This amazing device has completely alleviated the need to hunt, trap or poison foxes and hopefully it will also be available in Ireland soon! Hare coursing was my opponent's next topic, which she admitted was "cruel" before the dogs had to wear muzzles. I agree. If the purpose is to train greyhounds and no harm comes to the hare, then I don't think many people would object to it. My opponent then turned her attention to "deer poaching". This is illegal in Ireland and is also not a sport. I think she may be confusing it with "deer stalking" which takes place under licence and only at certain times of the year. This is not actually a sport either, rather wildlife management. Furthermore, the carcases are often sold to butchers that specialise in venison and I have no objection to this, and neither would most blood sports opponents. To conclude, my opponent quoted Darwin and implied that we should not ignore our basic human instincts. Apparently, hunting is in our blood. I mean how many of us can honestly put our hands up and say that we've never been tempted to fashion a spear out of a branch and chase a flock of sheep over open countryside? I know shouldn't be sarcastic, but there are lots of activities that are part of human instinct, such as fighting, raping and pillaging, that people living in civilised countries cannot legally pursue and the same principle should apply to cruel "sports" such as foxhunting. Thank you.