A senior Norfolk county councillor will not face legal action over a video that appears to show him striking a horse.
Anti-hunt activists claimed a video shows Bill Borrett, a Conservative councillor, hitting his horse twice with the handle of his hunting crop.
The video had been passed to the RSPCA and the Norfolk Constabulary.
The activists from the Norfolk/Suffolk Hunt Saboteurs group say the incident had been filmed on December 18 during a hunt near Lexham Hall, West Norfolk.
Police have now said after reviewing the footage it does not meet the threshold of a crime.
A spokesman said: “There will not be any criminal proceedings into the incident as following consultation with CPS and animal experts, it is deemed that it does not meet the threshold of a crime under the Animal Welfare Act".
Mr Borrett, who is the cabinet member for adult social care, public health and prevention at Norfolk County Council, refused to comment on the video when approached by the Eastern Daily Press.
However, a day after the footage emerged, Borrett resigned from his position as the director of a hunt group. It is not known whether the resignation is linked to the video.
The hunt saboteur activists said in a statement that Mr Borrett was: "hitting his horse in anger after it appeared to be refusing his instruction".
