Born Free speaks at UK Wildlife Crime meeting
Born Free’s Head of Policy, Dr Mark Jones, reports on the annual meeting held in London, to tackle wildlife crime in the UK.
Dr Mark Jones (far left) and Dominic Dyer (second left) at the PAW annual meeting
As an international wildlife charity, Born Free has always campaigned for action to curb the global scourge of wildlife trafficking – the highly lucrative illegal trade in wild animals, and parts and products derived from them, that devastates both individual animals and the wild populations to which they belong.
Dr Mark Jones, Head of Policy
We are also very concerned about the damaging impacts of wildlife crime here in the UK, whether it be poaching, badger baiting, hare coursing, or the persecution of birds of prey.
To this end we are longstanding members of the Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime. The Partnership, which is coordinated by government officials in the Department of Environment, brings together government representatives, the police and other enforcement agencies, researchers, wildlife protection organisations and animal welfare advocates, to share information and experience, and to work together to reduce wildlife crime.
On 30th July the Partnership held its annual meeting in London. The meeting was chaired by Chief Inspector Kevin Lacks-Kelly, Head of the UK’s National Wildlife Crime Unit, and featured presentations from DEFRA, police wildlife crime officers, the UK Border Force wildlife trafficking team, wildlife groups, and researchers who outlined some innovative research into novel ways of identifying the source of animal products entering the UK and summarised surveys exploring the experiences and attitudes of police officers in relation to wildlife crimes.
This year’s annual meeting had a big emphasis on ‘polycriminality’, in recognition that those who commit wildlife crimes are also likely to be involved in other types of criminal behaviour.
Along with Born Free’s British Wildlife Advocate, Dominic Dyer, I took part in a panel discussion, led by Chief Inspector Lacks-Kelly, during which we emphasised the urgent need for wildlife law reform to improve wildlife protection, and for giving enforcement and prosecutorial agencies and the judiciary the tools they need to address wildlife crime in the UK more effectively through training, making all wildlife crimes recordable and notifiable, and ensuring consistent and deterrent penalties for offenders.
While we often focus on wildlife trafficking overseas, we must not forget that wildlife crime is rife here in the UK, affecting the welfare of huge numbers of native wild animals, the conservation of species in our already wildlife-depleted country, and the lives and livelihoods of people in our rural and urban communities. The Partnership for Action Against Wildlife Crime is a really valuable forum, bringing together experts from across different organisations and disciplines to explore how we can all work together more effectively.
Those on the enforcement front line do remarkable work, often in dangerous situations. We need to ensure they are given all the support they need by recognising the serious nature of wildlife crime, ensuring that our wildlife protection laws are fit for purpose, and dedicating the resources needed to enable enforcers, prosecutors and judges to bring the criminals who commit these crimes to justice.
Find out more about Born Free’s work with British wildlife: