Ten years after Cecil: Celebrities, conservationists and MPs renew calls to ban trophy imports at Parliament rally
Ten years to the day since the shocking shooting of Cecil the Lion a powerful coalition of conservationists, politicians and celebrities gathered in Parliament to demand the UK government finally ban the import of hunting trophies.
The packed meeting, held on Tuesday in the Jubilee Room at the Houses of Parliament, was jointly hosted by the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting and the charity LionAid.
It was marked by impassioned speeches, sobering statistics, and a renewed plea for action on a promise yet to be fulfilled.
Eduardo Gonçalves, founder of the Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting, addressed the room with a stark warning: “It would have been bad enough if Cecil was just a horrible one-off. He wasn’t. Since Cecil was killed, 10,000 more lions have been shot by trophy hunters.
"Every year, tens of thousands of endangered animals are gunned down for so-called sport. We are in an age of utter insanity. What are we doing killing so many wild animals?!”
To mark the anniversary, Gonçalves has published three explosive new books: Mainlining on Heroin, 20 Elephants in 75 Minutes, and Shoot One Lion: Get One FREE, which together expose the global trophy hunting industry and name many of its top British clients. The books feature powerful forewords by celebrities Dr Jane Goodall, Priscilla Presley and Chris Packham.
Opening the event, veteran Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale, who formerly chaired the All-Party Parliamentary Group to Ban Trophy Hunting, told the audience: “The killing of Cecil should never have happened – and it should never have been allowed to happen again.
A video message from world-renowned primatologist Dr Jane Goodall was played to attendees, in which she implored MPs and peers to “renew their efforts to prevent trophy hunters from bringing their trophies back to the UK.” She added: “The promises to ban trophy imports have not been kept. I understand these things take time, but a moratorium could be announced literally today.”
Baroness Sue Hayman, currently Minister for Animal Welfare at DEFRA, also addressed the room, stating she was "genuinely pushing for change" and “deeply cares” about the issue.
LionAid’s Christine McSween backed Goodall’s call for an immediate moratorium and delivered a grim update: “Seventy-nine percent of Africa has now lost all of its lions. We are witnessing a collapse.” She cited LionAid’s latest report revealing just 13,000 lions remain in the wild, compared to around 200,000 in the 1970s.
Eduardo Gonçalves concluded: “The last time we lost a big cat was the sabre-tooth tiger – and that was in prehistoric times.”
TV presenter Chris Tarrant spoke emotionally about his own reaction to seeing Cecil’s killer, American dentist Walter Palmer, proudly posing with the lion’s body. “When I saw those gruesome pictures, I don’t think I was that surprised,” he said. “But when I heard that in Britain we do it as well, I was genuinely shocked. I’m normally a very proud Englishman, but I am ashamed of what we are still doing.”
Fellow animal rights campaigner Heather Mills struck a similar tone, asking: “What are the blocks? Why hasn’t the ban happened yet?” She added, “I told the taxi driver on the way here that I was speaking out against trophy hunting – and he couldn’t believe it was still a thing.”
After the event, a delegation led by Gonçalves, McSween, Ban Trophy Hunting’s Jane Evans, and Masai leader Boniface Mpario marched to Downing Street to deliver a petition by LionAid which has amassed nearly a million signatures.
Alongside it was a powerful open letter signed by an array of public figures including Sir Michael Caine, Catherine Zeta Jones, Sir Rod Stewart, Ozzy Osbourne, Liam Gallagher, Cliff Richard, Dr Jane Goodall, Priscilla Presley and Chris Packham, calling on the UK government to act now.
The books by Eduardo Goncalves are available to buy on Amazon, and you can find out more about The Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting at www.bantrophyhunting.org