THE annual Boxing Day hunt passed peacefully on Thursday, with more than 400 people taking part in a fox hunting meeting without a protester in sight.

Supported by foot followers and spectators, 51 horse-backed members of The Hampshire Hunt met at the Fur and Feathers pub in Herriard, near Basingstoke.

However, it could prove to be the last meeting of the 257-year-old hunt in its present form, as Parliament is considering the future of the sport.

A Government bill proposes to allow fox hunting under a special licence, while animal rights groups have called for the sport to be banned.

Huntmaster Mark Andreae said the sport was very much welcomed and supported by villagers.

He was backed by part-time gamekeeper Les Dominy, who said: "I think it's completely out of order - I don't think the Government has got any idea of what the people in the villages really want. It's part of our tradition and history, and this is what we turn out to see."

But a former secretary of the hunt, John Newcomb, 76, is confident there will be a Boxing Day meet next year.

He defended the sport as a humane way of controlling foxes, and said: "A good, strong fox will get away, but a mangy or gangrenous fox, or foxes injured by traps, are the ones most likely to be killed."

He added: "It is not just a question of killing them, but it disperses them from an area where they are unacceptable to farmers."

Current hunt secretary Nigel Webb said he was pleased with the day's turnout.

He said: "This is always a well-supported meet. I think, from the level of support we saw today, there is a lot of good feeling in the countryside for the sport."

Commenting on the lack of hunt demonstrators, he said: "It doesn't surprise me. Normally when they see a crowd like this, they keep away."