How anyone, be it members of SHout, BirdLife or the public but especially those of the Opposition, can simply “agree” (April 27) with the Prime Minister’s decision to close the spring hunting season – two days before it was due to close anyway – truly beggars belief.

Why, exactly, waste a heap of money on a referendum only for the Prime Minister to close the season because of abuse of the rules that everyone knows has taken place for years?

Does the Opposition really have nothing to say about the Prime Minister’s attempts at pandering to the No lobby after having publicly supported the other side (besides permitting them enjoyment of what is practically a full season of spring hunting)?

To be clear, I was and remain convinced that spring hunting is completely unsustainable. I am, however, also convinced of the unsustainability, not to mention cheek, of vote-collection exercises under the guise of publicly-funded referenda.

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