Banning trophy hunting would put endangered species at MORE risk, MPs told

MPs backing a proposed law banning hunters from bringing home trophies of their kills have been misled by a ‘hurricane of misinformation’, scientists claimed last night.

Instead of protecting vulnerable wildlife such as lions, rhinos and elephants, the ban risks torpedoing conservation efforts and slashing critical funding for African communities, experts say.

The Government last month threw its support behind a private member’s Bill that will ban imports of hunting trophies, including animal skins and heads, into Britain. The Bill follows a pledge by Boris Johnson in 2019 to ‘end this barbaric practice’.

But in an extraordinary intervention, some conservation experts this weekend accused the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting, an animal welfare campaign group, of feeding MPs ‘clear misinformation’ about the impact of a ban.

MPs backing a proposed law banning hunters from bringing home trophies of their kills have been misled by a ‘hurricane of misinformation’, scientists claimed last night (file image)

Amy Dickman, a professor of wildlife conservation at Oxford University, said researchers had analysed 118 statements made by MPs during a parliamentary debate last month and found that 85 (72 per cent) were either false or misleading. She said they included erroneous claims that there were as few as 10,000 lions left in the wild and that British trophy hunters were among the world’s ‘most active killers’ of endangered animals.

‘This recent debate showed how easy it is for clear misinformation to be accepted and shared by MPs, and used to directly influence policy-making,’ Prof Dickman said. ‘That is shocking, and highlights a major risk of biased interest groups being able to influence legislation.’

Adam Hart, a professor of science communication at the University of Gloucestershire, described the ‘scale of misinformation’ in Parliament as ‘staggering and deeply concerning’. He blamed the influence of the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting, whose director, Eduardo Goncalves, provides secretariat services for an all-party parliamentary group of MPs who support the ban.

‘Our concerns are based on evidence and experience, but we are whispering in a hurricane of misinformation deliberately manufactured to advance bans that will likely cause irreversible conservation harm,’ Prof Hart added.

Amy Dickman (pictured), a professor of wildlife conservation at Oxford University, said researchers had analysed 118 statements made by MPs during a parliamentary debate last month and found that 85 (72 per cent) were either false or misleading

Prof Hart and Prof Dickman are opposed to ‘canned’ hunting – where lions raised in captivity are shot by hunters in fenced enclosures.

In the Commons on November 25, Tory MP Henry Smith, who proposed the Bill, said: ‘Sadly, British trophy hunters are among the world’s most active killers of endangered species.’ But Prof Dickman highlighted data from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora showing the UK is ranked No 24 on a list of countries importing trophies from threatened species.

Mr Smith said researchers claim there could be as few as 10,000 to 15,000 lions left in the wild in Africa. But Prof Dickman said the best estimate was that there are 24,000 left. Calls for a ban on imports of hunting trophies won public support amid outrage at the killing of Cecil the lion by American dentist Walter Palmer in Zimbabwe in July 2015.

Mr Goncalves said scientists who oppose the hunting trophy ban ‘are in the minority’. Prof Dickman has raised more than £4 million for her conservation project, including £16,000 from pro-hunting groups in 2013. This money had been ‘far outweighed’ by funding from donors who oppose hunting, she said.

Charity Save the Rhino International says ‘responsible trophy hunting of rhinos’ is valid.