A new set of figures showing the scale of suspected illegal fox hunting and the havoc being inflicted on rural communities by fox hunts have been released by a national animal welfare charity.

The League Against Cruel Sports claims that there has been 474 reports relating to suspected illegal hunting, which includes 397 reports of foxes being chased and 1,117 reports of hunt havoc this season alone.

Emma Judd, head of campaigns at the League Against Cruel Sports, said: “These shocking figures underline why the Government has announced it will launch a consultation to ban trail hunting later this year, something we are urging them to publish without delay.

“But, more than that, the Hunting Act also needs to be strengthened by removing its loopholes, which are exploited by hunts to avoid prosecution for illegal hunting, and for custodial sentences to be introduced for those who persist in breaking the law.”

The figures cover the cub hunting season, which began in August, and then the main fox hunting season, from November 2024 to the end of March 2025.

The havoc caused by hunts includes anti-social behaviour and activities inconsistent with trail hunting, the discredited excuse used by hunts since the fox hunting ban in which they claim to claim to follow pre-laid trails.

These activities included hounds being struck on a busy road or railway line where no trail would have been laid, digging up badger setts to get to foxes that have fled underground, trespass – including in people’s private gardens – and causing harm or distress to other animals, such as family pets.

The figures are compiled from the charity’s confidential Animal Crimewatch service and hunt monitors’ reports by the league’s intelligence team, which is staffed by former police officers and civilian analysts.

The League Against Cruel Sports figures show the West of England is a particular fox hunting hotspot.