Metro Mayor Dan Norris, who is Chair of trustees of the League Against Cruel Sports, supported Friday's calls to end fox and deer hunting on Council-controlled land in Somerset calling it "torture".

Dan Norris, told The Journal: “Chasing, tormenting and killing a defenceless animal isn’t a sport. It’s torture plain and simple, and has no place in NE Somerset, or anywhere in the West of England or UK.

"One of my proudest moments as a local MP was voting for the fox hunting ban 18 years ago. But sadly as we have seen very recently, with the sickening case of the Avon Vale hunt, some people are still riding roughshod over both the spirit and the letter of the law.

"I’m calling on ministers to close every last loophole in the Hunting Act and it’s really, really important that local councillors, and everyone who cares about animals, takes a stand as well. I believe treating animals well is a mark of a civilised society, so we need to bring about an end to this cruelty once and for all”.

On Friday (17th February), League Against Cruel Sports called on leaders to end fox and deer hunting on Council-controlled land: