Ben Wallace takes on hunt saboteurs: 'Only soldiers should be masked and camouflaged on MoD land'

Ben Wallace has gone to war against hunt saboteurs, saying that soldiers are the only people who should be masked and camouflaged on Ministry of Defence land.

The Defence Secretary said that those who “intimidate” and “threaten” people are not welcome on land owned by the Government.

His comments came after it emerged he had written to the League Against Cruel Sports to terminate a Memorandum of Understanding that meant that the Ministry of Defence passed on information about where and when trail hunts were meeting on its land.

After an angry reaction to the decision, Mr Wallace tweeted a picture of a group of balaclava-clad activists holding the flag of the Hunt Saboteurs Association.

He accompanied the image with the message: “The only people that should be masked and camouflaged on MOD land are Armed Forces personnel training to defend the UK. People who intimidate and threaten other users are not welcome.”

The agreement to share information with the League had originally been set up in 2009, under the then Labour Government.

Mr Wallace cited security concerns and the intimidating behaviour of campaigners as the reason officials would no longer pass on information.

After the letter was made public, Mr Wallace became embroiled in a debate with an ITV reporter who had posted the response to a Freedom of Information request about the use of the MoD’s Salisbury Plain by the Royal Artillery Hunt.

In one email exchange officials note that the hunt had made “decoy” bookings, which prevented other users from accessing the plains.

The official said that they had become “very frustrated” by the hunt booking areas as a “smoke screen” and observed that other users would be “banned” for this behaviour.

The Telegraph understands that the hunt was using decoy bookings to try to avoid harassment by the saboteurs.

The FOI documents also contain reports of the actions of 10 balaclava-clad hunt saboteurs who were “shouting, abusive, threatening, intimidating language” invading people's personal space and trying to take control of the hounds using hunting horns and recording of hounds speaking.

The report, which noted that the saboteurs gave their names as “gorilla” and “pilot”, noted that their disruption made it harder for the hunt to stop the dogs chasing a deer.

Another report details how a fox was killed after the huntsman lost control of their hounds because of the actions of the saboteurs.

Other documents detail criminal allegations made against both the pack and saboteurs, including illegal hunting and criminal damage.

Rupert Evelyn, a reporter for ITV, tweeted a link to the documents saying that they revealed the “truth” of how public land was being “used to serve” Mr Wallace and his friends.  

In response, Mr Wallace accused the reporter of a “lack of impartiality”.

He asked: “Will you condemn the reports of intimidation by saboteurs and monitors in the FOI? The point is no user of the land is above the law nor above treating other users with respect.  Why should hunt sabs and monitors have special treatment over other users?”

Lee Moon, spokesman for the Hunt Saboteurs Association, said: “The Royal Artillery Hunt are using the Salisbury Plain as their own private playground and maybe Ben Wallace wants to spend more of his time focusing on whether they are breaking the law rather than the fact that the sabs wear masks.”

A spokesman from the Royal Artillery Hunt said that it “operates lawfully within the confines of the Hunting Act and we treat our licensing conditions and relationship with the MoD very professionally.

“In the face of extremely hostile and often violent behaviour from anti-hunting activists, the safety of our staff and supporters is paramount and we welcome any steps that are taken to ensure that.”

Tim Bonner, chief executive of the Countryside Alliance said: “Clearly, the MoD, like the British public, expects the law to be upheld by police and the criminal justice system, not masked vigilantes  with warped agendas. While small in numbers, saboteurs can be extremely violent and it is important that the threat they pose to the public is treated seriously”.