In celebration of World Wildlife Day, Catherine Bearder MEP picks out her top wildlife wins and losses of 2016-17

Mrs Bearder said:

“2016 was a historic year in the global fight against wildlife crime. From the ivory bans to the new CITES protection for over 500 species – there is a lot we can be proud of.

“But we would be kidding ourselves if we think the work here is done. Wildlife trafficking is still a top four global criminal activity and the money streams gained from it are often used to fund other illegal operations like arms trafficking and even terrorism.

“Wildlife by its nature is unsupervised and therefore vulnerable to the criminal gangs who exploit it for massive profit.”