IT has been 20 years since the Wild Mammals Protection (Scotland) Act supposedly ended fox hunting in Scotland. At the time, it was a big step forward for devolution. Scotland was the first part of the UK to ban the brutal practice, doing so three years before a similar bill took effect in Westminster.

However, it was also a story of missed opportunity. Unfortunately, despite some best intentions, there were some big loopholes in the legislation which have been used to provide cover and have allowed hunting and killing foxes with packs of dogs to continue much as it always had.

There have been attempts to strengthen the legislation since then, but for various reasons, our Parliament has been unable to finish the job.

Every day of inaction is another day that hunts can take place.

READ MORE: MSPs urged to close loopholes in new fox hunting legislation

In the Borders, Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire, there are registered hunts taking place several times a week, from November through March, each and every year, operating under the cover of legal activity such as falconry (killing the fox with a bird of prey) or flushing foxes from below ground, where they are driven out of their dens to be shot with guns.

But the League Against Cruel Sports has documented a huge number of cases showing suspicious activity, and the Government-commissioned Bonomy Review back in 2016 stated that about 20% of foxes disturbed by fox hunts are actually killed by the hounds.

Along with the hounds, there can be dozens of riders on horseback and terriers, all working together to trap the animal and prevent its escape. This is not natural, not humane, and it can never be justifiable.

It’s not just foxes that need to be protected. Hares, rabbits, stoats, mink and badgers are also at risk of suffering an agonising death from these horrific chases.

It is against this backdrop that the Scottish Parliament debated stage one of the new Hunting With Dogs Bill, which seeks to resolve these ambiguities and end hunting with dogs.

There is a lot to commend in the bill, but it is undermined by loopholes, including a scheme that would allow licensed hunting. This runs the risk of closing some loopholes only to open new ones.

There is no doubt about where public opinion lies. There are few issues where the people of Scotland are as united. Polls show that 87% of the Scottish public and almost 100% of those under 35 support a ban on fox hunting.

That is why the Scottish Greens are doing everything we can to strengthen the bill and ensure that we can finally get the watertight ban that the public wants and our wildlife deserves. At present, there are three big loopholes that undermine the proposed bill. I will be moving amendments to close all three of them.

The first action will be to remove the Scottish Government’s proposed licensing of hunting with packs of dogs in some circumstances. Make no mistake, if this bill establishes a licensing scheme for using more than two dogs, then hunting will persist.

We have no interest in licensing for cruelty.

A strict two-dog limit would put an end to hunting with packs. Hunts won’t want to go out with just two dogs – and if they do, it will be much easier for prosecutors to determine when the law is being broken.

Besides, much of the evidence reviewed by the Rural Affairs Committee indicated that it’s not necessary to use more than two dogs to “manage” wildlife or achieve “environmental benefit”.

I understand and sympathise with farmers’ need to minimise the loss of lambs and other stock. The two-dog limit won’t prevent farmers from protecting their livestock or crops – but it will encourage the use of more humane and effective stock management measures.

Secondly, I am seeking to remove the loopholes that allow the use of dogs for sport. There is no need to kill animals for sport. This is altogether different from killing them for food or to protect certain species, livestock or biodiversity. Almost 90% of people who support the bill object to exceptions being made for falconry, game shooting and deer stalking.

We know how this will be treated by the hunts. We cannot allow it to become another loophole – like in England, where hunts will sometimes carry birds of prey as a token presence to allow them to circumvent the two-dog limit there.

READ MORE: Farmers call on Scottish Government to urgently develop feral pig policy

Finally, I will be moving an amendment to end the exception for terrier work, which could provide a smokescreen for terrier work in fox hunts. This is when dogs are sent underground to flush out foxes. Even if the aim is to flush the fox or mink to kill it in a more humane way, sending terriers below ground often results in orphan cubs being killed by dogs underground or serious injuries to all animals involved.

Our position is clear. My Green colleagues and I will always oppose bloodsports. That’s why hunting with dogs is an excluded area in the Bute House Agreement that we negotiated with the SNP Government. Its exclusion means that we can push harder for more ambitious legislation that gives wild animals the protection and respect they need and deserve.

That said, there are also a lot of areas where we agree with the SNP and other parties across the Parliament. That is why I am confident there will be scope to work together to strengthen this bill as it makes its way through Parliament. The amendments that I am moving are a vital part of that process.

Hunting with packs of dogs is cruel, outdated and totally unnecessary. It belongs in the past and should have ended years ago. It has no place in modern and progressive Scotland. By taking action now, we can close the loopholes and end it for good.

Tomorrow, the League Against Cruel Sports will be marching in Edinburgh to support the ban. You can join the protest at 12.30 at St Giles’ Cathedral.