BRITAIN: Deer carcasses are being dumped in breach of the law on the estate of the Duke of Beaufort, one of Britain's grandest landowners and a friend of the Prince of Wales, to encourage foxes to breed and feed for the royal family's favourite hunt.
Secret filming over a year on the duke's Badminton estate in Gloucestershire shows deer carcasses from his private herd dumped in a wood near artificial fox earths.
In one sequence a deer is dragged along on a quad bike and then left for foxes to feed on.
Another deer which has the duke's herd tag on its ear is left for months and becomes infested with maggots. Foxes are shown feeding on it. The film, obtained by the Guardian newspaper in London and Britain's Channel 4 TV News, was taken by International Fund for Animal Welfare, the anti-hunt campaign, using a camera hidden in the woods and triggered by movement of animals or humans.
The regulations were introduced to ensure the proper and prompt disposal of all animal carcasses, and tightened in 1999 following the BSE crisis. The film also undermines the pro-hunting argument that they are keeping the numbers of foxes under control.
The wood - Allen Grove - is regularly used by the royals for hunting. Since hunting resumed before Christmas, Prince Charles, his sons William and Harry and the princess royal have been hunting there. Other members of the royal party who have joined the Duke of Beaufort hunt include Prince Michael of Kent and Ms Camilla Parker-Bowles.
Under legislation dating from 1992 all carcasses must be rendered, buried or incinerated. Last night Mr Simon Dring, an agent for the Duke of Beaufort's estate, said: "The duke is not aware of any of the matters which you have raised . . . but has asked us to look into them as a matter of urgency."