Warwickshire Hunt member hospitalises hunt sab
A member of West Midlands Hunt Saboteurs was taken to hospital on Saturday 30 November after a Warwickshire Hunt rider deliberately rode his horse at her. The sabs posted a video of the incident on Facebook, showing the hunt galloping through a field. They reported: “The rider can be seen riding his horse at speed […]
Philip Seccombe: pro-hunting Police and Crime Commissioner wants your opinion!
Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Philip Seccombe wants your opinion on his “plans for strengthening policing, safeguarding people and protecting communities in Warwickshire.” The PCC needs to take a look at his own record on hunting, while Warwickshire Police needs to take a look at its dire policing of wildlife crime. Seccombe’s office is conducting […]
Matt Western MP takes on the Countryside Alliance
It has been almost two years since Warwickshire Police issued the Warwickshire Hunt with a Community Protection Notice (CPN) for causing road chaos. Controversially, in August 2023 the force suddenly dropped the CPN, saying it had come to a private agreement with the hunt. MP Matt Western called it a “super scandal”. And now he […]
Pro-hunting PCC commissions review into Warwickshire Police hunting bias
A review into the behaviour of Warwickshire Police and its policing of fox hunting is underway. But pro-wildlife campaigners already have little confidence in the process, particularly because it has been commissioned by pro-hunting Police and Crime Commissioner Philip Seccombe. The review was launched on 30 September in response to the way the force has […]
VOTE May 2: Elections for Police and Crime Commissioners
Elections for England and Wales’ Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) take place on 2 May. Whoever gets in could have a major impact on wildlife. Whether we vote for our preferred candidate or vote tactically, it is essential that we all get out to vote. While the turnout for the PCC election is not as low […]
BREAKING: Warwickshire Hunt charged under the Hunting Act
Warwickshire Police has been under the spotlight for many months, repeatedly criticised for its biased policing of the Warwickshire Hunt. Meanwhile, Warwickshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Philip Seccombe, has been accused by many of having direct involvement over the policing of his hunting friends. Now, in a surprising U-turn, the police force has announced […]
OPINION: Philip Seccombe not fit for role as Police and Crime Commissioner
Warwickshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, Philip Seccombe, is once more running as a candidate in the 2 May PCC election. In a two-part series, Protect the Wild takes a closer look at his extensive links to hunting – including to his friends in the Warwickshire Hunt – and argues that someone with such an obvious […]
MP demands answers about policing of Warwickshire Hunt
MP Matt Western has written to both the Home Secretary and the Chief Constable of Warwickshire Police. The politician has said he is “making clear my express concerns about the lack of transparency” around the policing of the Warwickshire Hunt. Back in May 2022, Warwickshire Police’s Rural Crime Team gave the hunt a warning notice […]
Police investigate after Warwickshire Hunt tears apart fox
Warwickshire Police has announced that it is investigating the Warwickshire Hunt after hounds tore up a fox on 9 October. But we need concrete action from the police: saying it is investigating isn’t enough. All eyes will be on the force to prosecute this criminal gang. The announcement comes after Labour MP Matt Western sent […]
MP demands answers from Police and Crime Commissioner about hunting bias
Labour MP Matt Western has sent a letter to Philip Seccombe, Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Warwickshire, asking him about the questionable policing of the Warwickshire Hunt. A Conservative councillor on Stratford-on-Avon District Council between 2002 and 2017, Seccombe was first elected as the Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner in 2016 and re-elected for […]
Hunting community blames ‘extremists’ for being issued Community Protection Notice
Back in December 2022, the Warwickshire Hunt was issued with a Community Protection Notice (CPN). But now the police have backtracked, having negotiated with the hunt to come to a “sensible working arrangement”. It should come as little surprise that the hunting community has used this news as an opportunity to complain about police “criminalising […]
Police ‘ASBO’ the Warwickshire Hunt for causing road chaos
Warwickshire Police has slapped the Warwickshire Hunt with an ‘ASBO’. It means the hunt is required to tell the police whenever it crosses a public road. And the local hunt saboteur group has welcomed the move. On 14 December, Warwickshire Rural Crime Team announced it had issued a Community Protection Notice (CPN) to the Warwickshire […]