Countryside campaigners are supporting plans to create a hunting watchdog to put the sport under stricter rules if a ban on hunts is overturned.

David Cameron pledged a free vote on a repeal of the Hunting Act if the Conservatives swept to power.

But after the Tories failed to secure a majority, MPs are thought to be split between those who would support repeal and those who would vote in favour of the ban remaining.

In an effort to steer the controversial change through, a proposed Hunting Regulatory Authority (HRA) has been proposed to oversee the sport if it was legalised again.

The HRA, a proposal led by Lord Donoughue, the senior Labour peer, would apply a strict code of practice to ensure that hunting is carried out without causing unnecessary suffering.

It would also ensure that hunts respect property, land and crops and that it is only carried out on land with the permission of the owner.

Reports suggest the proposal has won the backing of Tory and Labour MPs and peers.

A spokesman for the Countryside Alliance said: "The Hunting Regulatory Authority is the compromise that should have come about when the Hunting Act was passed in 2004. The Hunting Act must be repealed, but we are putting in place an independent system to regulate hunting rather than going back to the pre-ban status quo."

Breaches of the rules could result in prosecution in the courts with those found guilty fined or permanently disbarred from hunting. A similar system operates in Northern Ireland.

Lord Donoughue led a 2007 review of greyhound racing aimed at eradicating cruelty and has worked to improve the horse racing industry.

He said there could be "no return" to the situation before the ban and hunting people could not simply turn back the clock. "We are trying to put forward a more moderate compromise approach," Lord Donoughue said.

"We need to achieve a proper balance between the needs of animal welfare, the need to avoid deliberate cruelty and the rights of the countryside to pursue its sports such as hunting."

Lord Donoughue, a former agriculture minister who was a senior adviser to Harold Wilson, appealed to Mr Cameron to throw his weight behind the compromise.

He said: "There is very strong support for the regulatory body within the sport.

"I think there is a reasonable chance that with a fair wind from the Government we could get this through the Lords and I think there is a fair chance that we would get it through the Commons."

The latest calculation is that up to 300 MPs are pro-repeal while the anti-hunting lobby can count on around 290 supporters in the new Parliament. Hunt supporters are hoping that with the offer of regulation dozens more MPs will support repeal.

Lord Donoughue said: "It is going to be quite a fight, but I think this is the best approach to this complex problem."