The Elephant In The Salesroom

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but the government’s proposal to ban virtually all ivory sales will need some thought, says Sue Bromley

- Sue Bromley

WHEN Environment Secretary Michael Gove announced plans to halt most ivory sales in the UK – there is now a consultation period until 29 December – it created something of a dilemma for both antiques sellers and owners.

The aim is to help combat poaching by removing opportunities for criminals to trade illegally-poached ivory. It’s hard to imagine anyone arguing with that as the number of elephants has declined by almost a third in the last decade and around 20,000 a year are still being slaughtered due to global demand for ivory. The illegal wildlife trade across the planet has become estimated to be worth up to £17 billion a year.

Michael Gove said: “Ivory should never be seen as a commodity for financial gain or a status symbol – so we want to ban its sale.”