UK trophy hunters ‘bring home two tonnes of tusks’

BIG-GAME hunters have freely brought almost two tonnes of elephant tusks to the UK from Africa over the past decade, a campaigning group has said.

Some 400 dismembered parts taken as “trophies” from some of the world’s most endangered animals like lions and rhinos have also been brought to Britain in recent years, the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting said.

A cross-party group of MPs including Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Conservative Zac Goldsmith have backed the group’s calls for an urgent ban on importing hunting trophies, which is currently exempt under international rules.

Hunters often pay tens of thousands of pounds to go on safari killing expeditions and are free to bring trophies home owing to an “extraordinary loophole” in CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) legislation, the campaign said.

Eduardo Goncalves, from the campaign, said poachers posing as trophy hunters were even taking advantage of the rule to export and sell items like rhino horns.

He said: “This is grotesque, uncontrolled slaughter on a massive scale, and it’s pushing threatened species to the brink of extinction.

“The Government wants to be seen as a global leader on wildlife and animal welfare.

“If it’s serious about this, it should commit to an immediate ban on imports.”

Conservationist Bill Oddie said the “insane” practice was putting already vulnerable species under even more threat.

He said: “Trophy hunting has always been senseless cruelty. Letting people kill them because they think it’s entertaining is just insane.

“When you’ve got a scattered, dwindling population, the loss of a handful of animals doesn’t just cause a ripple effect – it can be like a tsunami wave.”

Green MP Caroline Lucas called for the UK to follow the example of Australia, France and the Netherlands, which have banned the practice.

Mr Goncalves said: “UK hunters have killed literally hundreds of elephants, hippos, leopards, zebras and lions – and then brought home their trophies and body parts for show.

“As well as tusks and mounted trophies, UK hunters bring home ‘souvenirs’ from their elephant-hunting expeditions that include trunks, feet, ears and tails.”

Some 2,500 trophies have been brought home by UK hunters over the past decade, of which 400 were from the most endangered species, the campaign said, citing CITES figures.

Between 2007-16, there were 922kg of elephant tusks brought in, plus an additional 147 tusks, which typically weigh at least 6kg-8kg each, the group said.