The Scottish parliament is expected to vote today to ban hunting with dogs.

A spokesman for Jack McConnell, the first minister, said that an amendment to the protection of wild mammals (Scotland) bill will "satisfy concerns about the effects on people's livelihoods" as a result of the ban.

Meanwhile, Ann Widdecombe has put her name to an RSPCA campaign calling for a ban on hunting with dogs.

Forum Response: Countryside Alliance

A spokesman for the Countryside Alliance told ePolitix.com: "MPs have a duty to preserve the liberties and livelihoods of their constituents as well as working hard on the issues that their constituents care about. Promoting legislation that will criminalize the activities of a responsible minority and create yet more poverty and unemployment in rural areas is not a sensible use of parliamentary time.

"Hunting is not an issue that concerns the vast majority of the British electorate - who would rather see parliament devoting its time to issues such as crime, education and the NHS. Furthermore, public opinion is - contrary to the inaccurate claims of those who wish to see hunting criminalised - no longer in favour of a ban.

"This subject has now become the tired obsession of a small number of MPs who are not only out of touch with the rural people who stand to lose most if a ban was introduced, but are clearly out of touch with their own constituents too."