MORE than 5,000 horses were abandoned in Hampshire last year, new figures have revealed.

The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) revealed the county’s shocking statistics, which puts it among the worst in the country, as it pushes for tighter laws to tackle the issue of unlawful horse grazing.

It wants to see a change in legislation to make it easier for landowners to take action.

According to the CLA, RSPCA figures reveal the animal welfare charity received 1,005 calls about horse abandonment in Hampshire – the fifth highest figure in the country and a significant rise on 866 from the year before.

In total 5,108 horses were reported abandoned in the county – the second highest figure in the country after Surrey.

The CLA is working with animal welfare charities and rural groups to call for new legislation so local authorities and landowners can take quick and cost-effective action.

Robin Edwards, CLA director south-east, said: “Fly-grazing horses is a serious problem which creates a range of challenges in terms of the horse’s welfare, damage to land, and a safety risk for motorists when horses escape onto roads.

“It is currently very difficult for farmers and landowners to take action to remove abandoned horses from their land or to link irresponsible owners to their animals.”

This comes after the Daily Echo told in June how Hampshire was the worst place in the country for horse cruelty.

The RSPCA revealed how rescues of abused and neglected equines soared by 300 per cent last year.

A spokesman said: “For years we have been calling on the Government to bring in tougher laws on fly-grazing that will enable landowners, including local authorities, to act more quickly to resolve these situations and serve as a real deterrent.

“Already we’ve seen numbers of horses fly-grazed in England growing as numbers in Wales are on the decrease after it introduced its own tougher laws in January this year.

“Charities like the RSPCA just cannot keep picking up the pieces when horses are left by irresponsible owners on other peoples’ land with no accountability and very little thought for the animals’ welfare.”