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<p>We take conservation of endangered species seriously: imports are subject to strict
controls under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
Imports of hunting trophies of lions and certain other species require both a CITES
export permit from the country of origin and an import permit issued by the country
of import.</p><p> </p><p>The UK will only issue an import permit if it is satisfied
that the trophy has been legally acquired. The UK’s CITES Scientific Authority also
makes a sustainability assessment, taking into consideration the views of the EU CITES
Scientific Review Group (SRG), to confirm that the trade will not be detrimental to
the conservation of the species concerned. Imports of hunting trophies of animals,
such as African elephants and lions, from various countries have been assessed regularly
at meetings of the SRG, most recently at its meeting in November 2017, where the decision
to refuse imports of lion hunting trophies from Mozambique, (except from the Niassa
reserve), was taken. Other countries from which imports of lion hunting trophies are
no longer permitted include Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Guinea,
Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania and Somalia.</p><p> </p><p>In 2016, the then Minister for
the Environment, Rory Stewart commissioned a study on lion conservation with respect
to the issue of trophy hunting. Defra is currently looking carefully at trophy hunting
imports to ensure that they do not impact on the sustainability of endangered species.</p><p>
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