A herd of African elephants
The High Court has today (05 November) upheld the Ivory Act and ruled against a claim brought by a part of the antiques sector that the ban was unlawful.
The group of antiques dealers unsuccessfully argued in court that the Ivory Act was unlawful under EU law, including that it would disproportionately and adversely affect their businesses and incomes.
Today's ruling means that the government will now press ahead to bring into force the ivory ban as soon as practicably possible, with a likely implementation date of early next year.
Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers said:
I welcome today's ruling by the High Court which upholds the UK's commitment to ban the ivory trade.
We will move forward and make sure the ban comes into operation as soon as possible to protect wildlife and the environment.
The hearing for the judicial review of the Ivory Act 2018 took place on 16 and 17 October 2019.
