LABOUR has accused the Scottish Greens of "selling out" their principles on animal welfare as MSPs prepare to vote on new legislation on fox hunting.

Anas Sarwar's party criticised the Greens for not including field sports in the Bute House agreement signed with the SNP in August last year.

Hunting is one of the policy areas excluded from the pact, which saw the Greens co-leaders Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater become junior ministers in the Scottish Government in return for Greens' support on key Holyrood votes.

Labour say excluding field sports from the agreement gives the SNP a "free pass" to ignore the Greens' opposition to them and allow loopholes to continue in the law. 

The Scottish Government introduced the Hunting With Dogs Bill earlier this year in a bid to close shortcomings in existing legislation, dating back to 2002, designed to ban the blood sport.

However, concerns have been raised by both Labour and Greens MSPs over a proposed new licensing system in the new bill which would continue to allow packs of dogs to hunt and kill foxes.

Under the new system farmers and landowners could obtain a hunting licence for more than two dogs if they can demonstrate it is for "predator control" or other environmental reasons and if they have no alternative ways of stopping foxes from harming their livestock.

The permits would be issued and administered without any cost to the applicant by the Scottish Government's environment agency NatureScot.

Licences designed for predator control would be valid for 14 days and those for environmental purposes valid for up to two years.

Both Labour and the Greens will put down amendments to oppose the licensing system as the bill proceeds through the Scottish Parliament.

Labour's animal welfare spokesman Colin Smyth said his party will lodge amendments to remove proposals for the licensing scheme.

The Scottish Greens' rural affairs spokesperson Ariane Burgess has also said she will seek to significantly strengthen the bill through a series of amendments.

MSPs are today expected to pass the general principles of the bill when it is voted on at its first parliamentary stage.

Mr Smyth urged MSPs to "right the wrong" by supporting the amendments when they come to parliament later.

He said: "Hunts have been riding roughshod over both the letter, and the spirit, of the fox hunting ban for a decade now, but we finally have a chance to right this wrong.

"The SNP are set to create new loopholes as we close the old ones with their unworkable and unnecessary licensing scheme - but you cannot license cruelty.

"The Greens have sold out animal welfare in government, by giving the SNP a free pass to ignore their views.

"I will fight to make this the last tally-ho for hunting by removing this loophole and consigning this archaic sport to the history books once and for all.

"If SNP MSPs vote with the Tories against my amendment, they will be voting to continue hunting with packs of dogs."

Meanwhile, Ms Burgess said the proposals must be careful not to close loopholes and replace them with new ones.

She said: "Hunting with packs of dogs is cruel, outdated and totally unnecessary. It should have ended years ago.

"A lot of people think fox hunting is already banned in Scotland, but the reality is that there are far too many loopholes in the existing law.

"This has allowed fox hunting to continue throughout the last 20 years. It's also allowed the continuation of underground fighting between terrier dogs and foxes.

"The new bill is supposed to resolve these ambiguities and make it easier to prosecute illegal activity, but the licensing scheme would risk closing some loopholes while creating new ones.

"There is no excuse for these brutal and inhumane practices to continue, and the polls have repeatedly shown that the public back an outright ban."

Jake Swindells, Director of the Countryside Alliance said: “Scottish Labour are playing politics with the future of some of Scotland’s most iconic species and the livelihoods of livestock farmers.

"All the evidence from peer reviewed research and the government’s own review is that the use of packs of dogs is vital for fox control which protects species like the curlew and capercaillie as well as lambs and other livestock from fox predation.

"The fact that Labour is willing ignore evidence to pursue its own prejudice explains why it is consistently rejected by the voters of rural Scotland.”

Speaking ahead of the debate later today, environment and land reform minister Mairi McAllan said: “The chasing and killing of a wild mammal with a dog for sport, or otherwise, has no place in modern Scotland.

"The Hunting with Dogs Bill will finish the work started 20 years ago by delivering a comprehensive ban on the use of dogs to chase and kill foxes, hares and other wild mammals.

“By introducing this Bill, I want to both close loopholes in the existing legislation which have allowed this already illegal activity to persist in our society, and take steps to prevent other potential loopholes from opening.

“However, I recognise that foxes and other wild mammals can be a significant concern for farmers, and can pose a serious risk to livestock.

"The Bill has been designed to balance the needs of farmers, land managers and conservation groups - who must be allowed to effectively manage wildlife where necessary - with the need to stop illegal hunting and prevent unnecessary suffering.

“The intention of the licensing scheme is to provide for exceptional situations where, for example, the local terrain or conditions mean that a limit of two dogs would not allow farmers to protect their livestock.

"We do not intend to allow this licensing regime to become a loophole, that is why we have set out robust controls on its use within the Bill, including restricting the maximum number of days for which a licence can be issued.

“I welcome the RAINE Committee’s recent report and am pleased that they agree with the general principles of the Bill.

"And I welcome Lord Bonomy’s comments during the Committee evidence sessions, where he said that he considers this Bill to be “a very well-crafted piece of legislation” which “solves the problems of the loose and variable use of language” and “should be a great incentive for better enforcement of the law”. 

“I look forward to the debate and hearing members’ contributions.  I will listen closely to what is discussed and give careful consideration to any suggestions.”