George Howarth: "I don't think there's any connection between the two events"

The Political Animal Lobby gave the money to Labour ahead of the 1997 general election.

According to a leaked memo by Home Office minister George Howarth published in The Daily Telegraph, its sister organisation, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, threatened to target the government unless progress was made towards a hunt ban.

George Howarth: Leaked memo warns of threat from anti-hunt group

But Mr Howarth on Monday said the donation had no bearing on the new ban, announced by Prime Minister Tony Blair on BBC One's Question Time last week.

"We certainly had meetings with IFAW, but that wasn't the only group we've had meetings with and I'm certainly not prepared to comment on any internal document that may or may not have been leaked," Mr Howarth told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"I don't think there's any connection between the two events. They donated to us for whatever reason in the belief that we would be a better government for animals in general than the previous government, not based on the fact that they could bribe us to do so, as some people may be suggesting."

But Tory chairman Michael Ancram said the donation showed, "New Labour can be well and truly bought."

"It shows that the government has learned nothing from the Formula One, Bernie Ecclestone affair," he said.

Route to ban undecided

Mr Howarth said the government had considered how best to move forward with a ban since a private member's bill failed to pass through Parliament last year, despite overwhelming support from MPs.

"On balance we decided that to move forward with this agenda of banning hunting with dogs was a good political move and was a good move in principle.

"We've been listening to all the arguments, we've now arrived at a conclusion."

The minister refused to state if the government's plans would become clear before MPs left Westminster for their summer recess.

He equally said it remained undecided as to how the government would choose to bring forward its ban.

While it might decide to introduce its own bill on the issue, or add an amendment on a bill on a related topic, it could still return again as a private member's bill.

The difference this time would be that the government would guarantee to give the bill the necessary parliamentary time for it to become law.

Speaking on Question Time, Mr Blair suggested it would be much easier to get a fox hunting ban through Parliament when hereditary peers had been removed from the House of Lords.

Widdecombe loses hunt role

The return of the fox hunting issue may be intended as a vote-winner by the prime minister, but it threatens a great battle between the government and the powerful countryside lobby.

But Shadow Home Secretary Ann Widdecombe will not be speaking on fox hunting for the Conservative Party after she condemned the sport.

Writing in The Observer, Miss Widdecombe accused hunt supporters of polarising Britain by characterising the dispute as one between town and country.

Ann Widdecombe: Fox hunting is "cruel" and "rightly doomed"

In her first remarks on the sport since she was promoted to her new role two weeks ago, Miss Widdecombe denounced fox hunting as "cruel" and "rightly doomed".

She added: "A meet may be a splendid and traditional sight but I find no place for it in a modern, humane society."

Tory leader William Hague then announced Miss Widdecombe would no longer be speaking for the party on fox hunting.