LABOUR MPs and Countryside Alliance chiefs were surprised to see details of one of their private meetings splashed over The Guardian this week.

It was a very interesting article, not least because the paper managed, somewhat unsurprisingly, to get the name of the countryside group's chief executive Richard Burge wrong.

He became Sturge half way through the story. But that is a little aside. The Countryside Alliance also vehemently protested about the paper's headline, which suggested it was giving up the ghost on fighting a ban on fox-hunting.

Peterborough MP Helen Brinton was the host of the dinner with the rural chiefs.

Other MPs included Diana Organ (Forest of Dean), David Lepper (Brighton Pavilion), Bob Laxton (Derby North), David Kidney (Stafford), Christine Russell (Chester), Jane Griffiths (Reading East) and Mark Todd (South Derbyshire).

Westminster was full of rumours as to who had leaked the story to The Guardian.

Was it one of these MPs or the Countryside Alliance? The Evening News dismisses both these theories.

The finger of suspicion turns on Worcester Labour MP Mike Foster. He remains surprisingly tight-lipped about the story.

''All I will say is that my days in the car industry have taught me never to leave anything behind in a photocopier,'' he reveals. But he strenuously denies leaking anything to The Guardian.

Mr Foster notched up another victory for people in Worcester when Home Secretary Jack Straw unveiled a Bill on banning fox-hunting.

The Labour MP stresses that it was the readers of the Evening News who persuaded him to take up this issue. Mr Foster was up early on Wednesday before the Queen's Speech. The BBC's Today programme had asked him to do an interview on fox-hunting that morning.

But when he arrived at the Millbank studios, he was met by apologetic BBC staff.

''Did no one tell you we have changed our plans for the programme,'' they told the MP before dashing for cover.