How low will they go?

Dan Norris (Lab, Wansdyke) was in Badminton, Gloucestershire last night. Some hunt supporters pelted him and his staff with eggs and someone punched his female assistant (Source BBC Gloucestershire)

Dan Norris himself was remarkably even handed, "It is unfortunate because I don't think these hot heads are typical of the behaviour I have seen from the pro-hunt lobby. It's a great shame because I don't think they do their cause any good, and they let their side down."

Sadly, the Beaufort Hunt's joint master Captain Ian Farquhar was less concilliatory (especially considering it was his people that had acted disgracefully). "He's come out of his constituency and he's the one that's pushed though this bill which will put people out of work. He's here to gloat he's right ... and I think that stinks."

But Dan Norris wasn't there to gloat, he was invited by BBC Points West to take part in a live interview/debate with hunt supporters.

Pelting politicians with eggs is just part of our political culture and I wouldn't want to condemn that. But when your "protest" involves punching a woman, that's completely unacceptable and I call on the Countryside Alliance to unequivocally make clear that such actions have absolutely no merits whatsoever and to point out that the Beaufort Hunt have demeaned the image of hunt supporters everywhere.

UPDATE 18th Feb - Of course Captain Farquhar doesn't have his facts right either, Dan Norris isn't the one that's pushed through this bill. His bill was the Private Member's Bill that was talked out in 1998.

UPDATE 18th Feb - A spokeswoman for the Beaufort Hunt said "I think he [Dan Norris] was asking for it. [The action]was definitely not from a drunken minority". So, John, these are the people you have allied yourself with.