Europe celebrates first 'Tiger Day'

9.52.46am UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 17th Apr 2008

Sarah with tiger expert Valmik Thapar

Sarah Ludford met tiger expert Valmik Thapar at the European Parliament's first 'Tiger Day' on April 16th, when MEPs were urged to play a key role in helping save the fewer than 3, 000 remaining tigers living in the wild by adding their voices to calls for action.

Sarah, an avid fan of BBC programmes Big Cat Diary and Tiger - a spy in the jungle has already been active on this campaign, working with London-based Environmental Investigation Agency.

She said "The European Commission and EU Member States must put pressure on China not to lift the 15-year ban on trade in tiger parts and must offer more assistance for conservation measures, especially those which offer local people an incentive and a livelihood in protecting these magnificent animals."

You can find out more about Sarah's previous campaigning on behalf of the world's tiger population here: http://www.sarahludfordmep.org.uk/news/000930/sarah_demands_better_protection_for_the_worlds_tigers.html