§ 10. Mr. Edward Leigh (Gainsborough)If he will make a statement on his policy on recreational shooting. [149394]
§ The Minister for Sport (Kate Hoey)The Government strongly support the sport of shooting which, as with other sports, can help with character building and the development of interpersonal skills and personal discipline.
§ Mr. LeighI am very glad to hear the Minister"s ringing endorsement; she, of course, has a fine record on such subjects, particularly hunting. She must be aware that the League Against Cruel Sports—I have seen literature from it—has recreational shooting firmly in its sights, believing that it is a cruel sport and that it is wrong that game should be artificially bred We have heard such false arguments applied to hunting Will the hon. Lady give a commitment that under no circumstances will the 574 Government whom she represents introduce any Bill that could be used as a vehicle, under a so-called free vote, to put at risk recreational shooting, as hunting is at the present time?
§ Mr. Denis MacShane (Rotherham)My eyesight is now too bad to allow me to be let loose with a gun, but in my youth I went rough shooting and recreational shooting. Many of my constituents enjoy the sport. I should like to reaffirm from the Labour Benches the view that hunting with guns—recreational shooting—is part of our countryside tradition, and that the Labour party remains firmly committed to it.
§ Kate HoeyI absolutely agree with everything that my hon. Friend has said. We are very successful at the sport. I had the privilege of seeing Richard Faulds win the Olympic gold medal in the double trap event. Ian Peel won the silver medal at the Paralympics; people with disabilities can take part in the sport on an equal footing. I also saw Isabel Newstead win a gold medal and Deanna Coates win a bronze. We want to support the sport and see continued success in it.