New proposals to ban fox hunting in Northern Ireland have been brought forward by Alliance Party MLA John Blair.

The proposal from the MLA also seeks to prohibit the hunting of wild mammals with dogs in NI.

However, opposition has been raised with the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) extremely critical of the new proposals on banning fox hunting.

The UFU points out that it would put a stop to trail hunting and flushing with dogs for pest control and could potentially prohibit other methods, such as setting snares.

UFU president Victor Chestnutt has written to both John Blair and the speaker of the NI Assembly to raise concerns about the proposals and an associated survey, which aims to gauge views from the public on the matter.

In particular, the online survey states that there is “strong support from the farming community to ban hunting with dogs”.

“There has been no engagement with UFU on this subject, as the largest democratic voluntary organisation representing farmers and growers in NI, it is difficult to understand how such a statement can be made,” the letter from Chestnutt reads.

The survey also states that hunts pose a biosecurity risk for farms, but the UFU points out that hunts are only permitted access to farmland with the landowner’s approval.

“It is the landowner’s decision as to whether or not the hunt can travel across their land. Farmers would not grant access if there was a biosecurity risk to their business,” the UFU letter states.

The union also points out that it has a long-standing written agreement with Countryside Alliance and the NI Masters of Hounds Association that allows landowners to resolve disputes with hunt organisers if they occur.

Chesnutt has asked John Blair to come forward with proposals on how foxes and other pests should be managed if his bill is passed.

“The fox population requires management as it is a real and present predator in NI to domestic poultry flocks and lambs,” the UFU letter reads.