Theresa May wants to bring back fox hunting and has said she will renew the Tory pledge to hold a free vote on overturning the ban.

The Prime Minister says she has "always been in favour of fox hunting" and will recommit to the 2015 Conservative Manifesto promise to give Parliament the chance to make a decision.

During a visit to a factory in Leeds, Mrs May said: "This is a situation on which individuals will have one view or the other, either pro or against.

"As it happens, personally I have always been in favour of fox hunting, and we maintain our commitment, we have had a commitment previously as a Conservative Party, to allow a free vote.

"It would allow Parliament the opportunity to take the decision on this."


Her comments immediately drew fire from one Tory candidate, Dr Sarah Wollaston, who tweeted: "To be clear: I'm wholly opposed to a future govt wasting time on fox hunting. If elected I wld oppose a return to hunting. Time to move on."

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The Labour government banned fox hunting in England and Wales in 2004 but the issue has remained highly divisive.

Image: Mrs May spoke about the issue during a factory visit in Leeds

David Cameron dropped the plan for a vote due to lack of support and in December 2015 sports minister Tracy Crouch said that Parliament "had better things to do than bringing back hunting foxes with hounds".

Ms Crouch, patron of the Conservatives Against Fox Hunting group, said it was a "pursuit from the past" that should stay "consigned to history".

A survey by Ipsos MORI in December 2016 found 84% of people were in favour of retaining the ban on fox hunting.

According to an email seen by the Mirror newspaper, pro fox hunting campaigners see a Conservative landslide win as their change to repeal the ban.

In the exchange, Conservative Lord Mancroft, chairman of the Council of Hunting Associations, said: "A majority of 50 or more would give us a real opportunity for repeal of the Hunting Act."

He added: "While nothing in politics is certain, this is by far the best opportunity we have had since the ban, and is probably the best we are likely to get in the foreseeable future."

He said he had been given "assurances" a parliamentary vote would be in the Conservative manifesto.