I appreciate the strength of feeling around this issue. I take the welfare of all animals extremely seriously and I am committed to strengthening and supporting long-term conservation of animals both internationally and at home.
You may have seen that I have spoken in support of the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill - a really important Private Members Bill brought by my colleague Henry Smith. You can watch my speech in Parliament on this important issue here. The Bill is a manifesto commitment and is fully supported by the Government.
In 2019, the Government held a consultation on the scale and impact of the import and export of hunting trophies. Over 44,000 responses to the call for evidence and consultation were received. The Government’s response to the consultation sets out plans to ban imports of hunting trophies from nearly 7,000 endangered and threatened species, including lions, rhinos, elephants, and polar bears. This will be one of the toughest bans in the world and means that the UK will be leading the way in protecting endangered animals.
It is absolutely disgusting that people travel to exotic locations to hunt and dismember wild animals (often endangered species) to display on the walls of their homes. It is also terrible for the environment and threatens their natural evolution because trophy hunters deliberately target the strongest & biggest, which is having a direct effect on the ability of smaller animals to survive in their natural habitats.
Due to longstanding constituency engagements on 17th March, I will not be present in Parliament for the Bill’s next stage, although I do hope to attend an event in Parliament on Wednesday 15th March which is in support of the Bill. It is the latest in a raft of animal welfare legislation that the Government has introduced since 2019 including on puppy smuggling, animal sentience, prohibiting battery farming, tougher sentences for animal cruelty and mandatory CCTV in abattoirs. Next up will be the Kept Animals Bill and I will keep pushing on this important area of the law.
(March 2023)
