Michael Gove announces ban on 'abhorrent' ivory sales
2 min read
Ministers will introduce a ban on ivory sales to crackdown on the "abhorrent" trade, Michael Gove has said.
The Government will introduce a ban on the sale of ivory products after a public consultation found overwhelming support for the move.
Once introduced, the ban will be the toughest in Europe and across the rest of the world and will cover ivory items of all ages.
It is hoped that the new plans will help cut down on the poaching trade which results in 20,000 elephant deaths each year.
Announcing the new measures, Environment Secretary Michael Gove said: “Ivory should never be seen as a commodity for financial gain or a status symbol, so we will introduce one of the world’s toughest bans on ivory sales to protect elephants for future generations.
“The ban on ivory sales we will bring into law will reaffirm the UK’s global leadership on this crucial issue, demonstrating our belief that the abhorrent ivory trade should become a thing of the past.”
The CEO of wildlife conservation group Tusk Trust, Charlie Mayhew MBE said: “We are delighted that the Government has listened to our concerns and given the overwhelming public response to their consultation is now moving decisively to introduce tough legislation to ban the trade in ivory in the UK.
“The narrowly defined exemptions are pragmatic. The ban will ensure there is no value for modern day ivory and the tusks of recently poached elephants cannot enter the UK market. We welcome the fact that Ministers are sending such a clear message to the world that the illegal wildlife trade will not be tolerated and every effort will be made to halt the shocking decline in Africa’s elephant population in recent years.”
Tanya Steele chief executive at WWF said the ban would make the UK a "global leader" in tackling the illegal enterprise, estimated to be worth £17bn a year.
“Around 55 African elephants are killed for their ivory a day, their tusks turned into carvings and trinkets. This ban makes the UK a global leader in tackling this bloody trade and it’s something WWF has been fighting hard for.
“But if we want to stop the poaching of this majestic animal, we need global action. We hope the UK will continue to press countries where the biggest ivory markets are, most of which are in Asia, to shut down their trade too.”
The plans are part of a larger UK effort to crackdown on ivory poaching with UK military personnel and border agents training foreign counterparts in anti-poaching and anti-smuggling techniques.
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