THE many hunts which graced the countryside of the region on Boxing Day went about their traditional activity in a strange atmosphere.

The siege mentality has been a part of fox hunting life for some time now, but nevertheless there was an unmistakable sense of precious occasion about the meets which took place. They were well supported because they could conceivably be the last Boxing Day hunts we see, at least in the present unregulated form.

There was a poor turnout by the hunt saboteurs and other anti-hunt groups. Perhaps with the current Bill starting its journey through Parliament they may think the battle is all but over. Undoubtedly, the next three months leading up to the critical Commons vote will be crucial to the future of an ancient country tradition and the livelihoods of many thousands of people.

So, is it all over bar the shouting?

To an extent it probably is in as much as it seems inevitable that some legislative/bureaucratic framework will be estabished to regulate or license hunts. If the rump of New Labour MPs do shy away from an outright ban, they will not be able to resist the overwhelming desire of most politicians to interfere with institutions and lifestyles they do not always fully understand.

There is a very good chance that the outright ban will be avoided. As the debate intensifies in the coming weeks the fundamental intellectual weakness of the argument in favour of a ban will be exposed to greater scrutiny. At the same time the illiberal aspects of legislation which denies to a minority an activity which has been practised quite legally for centuries on the basis of vague feelings of distaste on the part of the majority will become ever more apparent.

There are also a large number of Labour MPs representing previously Tory rural constituencies. Many of them have thin majorities which are vulnerable to a thousand or more angry ex-hunt supporters and employees keen to exact revenge at the ballot box, perhaps just a few weeks after the hunt vote in March.

Although it is of course a free vote, the attitude of the Cabinet is important too. The Labour Party in the Commons may not be as compliant as it was in 1997, but the majority of Labour MPs take their cue from the top. Recent utterings of a number of key Cabinet members have at best suggested lukewarm support for a ban. Most would appear to have no strong feelings on the issue. Without doubt most feel that a long and protracted battle with the fox hunting community in trying to enforce a ban would not be good politics.

Clearly they wish to discharge their manifesto commitment to a free vote on hunting but they do not wish to deal with the practicalities of implementing legislation to outlaw the practice. It is probably likely that a number of them also share the view that if a ban on hunting is implemented, shooting and fishing will be next on the abolitionists' agenda.

The battle for hunting is not over and huntsmen and women should remain confident that, provided they keep pressing their argument to the day of the London protest on March 18, they will prevail to hunt another day.