‘Wildlife crime makes us all poorer', says Theresa May

Ongoing animal slaughter must be treated with same severity as drug and people trafficking, say leaders from 80 nations gathered in London

The mass trafficking of wildlife impoverishes everyone in the world and must be treated with the same severity as drug and people trafficking, according to leaders from 80 nations gathered at the Illegal Wildlife Trade conference in London on Thursday.

"The illegal wildlife crime makes us all poorer, not just those countries robbed of their wildlife, natural habitat and resources, but all of us who are cheated of our natural inheritance, the rich diversity of our living world," said Theresa May, UK prime minister, on Thursday. "We need to treat this billion-dollar criminal enterprise in the same way we do other serious and organised crimes."