Foxes lose out to Lords

The House of Lords -- the upper house of the British parliament -- has voted to reject any statutory control on the sport of hunting foxes with dogs.

A government bill to outlaw hunting completely had been passed overwhelmingly in the House of Commons, but the Lords rejected both this option and an alternative under which hunting with dogs would be regulated and controlled by license.

The issue has provoked a wide debate within Britain and correspondents point out that although the government could in theory eventually over-rule the upper house decision, any hunting Bill would fall if, as many expect, an early general election is called shortly.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service