[3] On 13 February 2002 the Parliament voted by eighty-three to thirty-six to pass the legislation to ban hunting with dogs.

The Scottish Countryside Alliance attempted to block introduction of the legislation by taking their case to the Court of Session in Edinburgh, although their appeal was not successful and in July the Judge recognised the will of the Parliament on this issue.

[7] A number of convictions took place under the Act, two for people hunting foxes and ten for hare coursing.

The only prosecution of a traditional fox hunt led to a not guilty verdict, but to a clarification of the law, with the sheriff saying that the activity of flushing foxes to guns "will require to be accompanied by realistic and one would expect, effective arrangements for the shooting of pest species.

The use of what might be termed "token guns" or what was described by the Crown as paying lip service to the legislation is not available ... as a justification for the continuation of what was referred to in the evidence before me as traditional fox hunting.