We want to see a total ban on the import and export of hunting trophies into the UK, with no loopholes that may assist in the covert trade of animal parts.   

We will fight against any pro-trophy hunting amendments, such as a ‘conservation enhancement exemption’. This would allow UK trophy hunters to import the parts of critically endangered species like the black rhino, arguing that the money used to fund the hunt promotes the conservation of the species.  

We will demand that captive bred animals, such as those in the canned hunting industry, are not left behind. More than 8,000 captive-bred lions are kept in more than 250 breeding facilities in South Africa, and we cannot allow the UK to be complicit any longer.  

To kill a lion that cannot escape and has been hand-reared and taught to trust humans is not a sport, it is a slaughter. You can read more about our work to end big cat farming in South Africa through our Vicious Cycle Report. 

Despite more than 80% of the British public supporting a ban on trophy hunting imports, CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) data indicates a worrying upturn in the import of hunting trophies into the UK. Disturbingly, the number of lions imported into the UK has also increased. Just two were imported in 2022, and this grew to 28 in 2023. 

In 2021, the Government promised to introduce one of the toughest bans on hunting trophy imports in the world, encompassing nearly 7,000 endangered and threatened species.   

Six months later, Henry Smith MP for Crawley tabled a government-backed Private Member’s Bill: The Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill. After successfully passing through all stages in the House of Commons, the Bill was sadly dropped in October 2023 after being held hostage in the House of Lords at Committee Stage by a handful of pro-hunting Peers.  

A new iteration of the Bill was introduced by John Spellar MP, also successfully completed its Second Reading in the House of Commons and secured Government backing but fell when the General Election was called. 

In July 2025, we marked the 10-year anniversary of Cecil the lion’s death with an event for Parliamentarians to reignite the flame of action and to remind the Government of their promise to end the UK’s involvement in trophy hunting. We must urgently secure parliamentary time for a new version of the Hunting Trophies (Import Prohibition) Bill and ensure it passes through all stages of Parliament both unattested and as quickly as possible.