Britain set to ban trade in ivory

LONDON : The Theresa May government confirmed on Tuesday that it will pass a law to ban ivory sales to protect elephants, but most ivory items from the British Raj that were either gifted or brought to the United Kingdom will be exempt.

Environment secretary Michael Gove said the ban will cover ivory items of all ages – not only those produced after a certain date.

The maximum penalty for breaching the ban will be an unlimited fine or up to five years in jail.

Official sources said the number of elephants has declined by almost a third in the last decade and around 20,000 a year are still being slaughtered due to the global demand for ivory, mostly in Africa and Asia.

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 critical issue, demonstrating our belief that the abhorrent ivory trade should become a thing of the past”.

Buckingham Palace and museums across Britain possess several colonial-era ivory items from India, which has been criticised by members of the royal family such as Prince Charles and Prince William, who have campaigned against slaughter of elephants for ivory.