EU Commission proposes to relax protection of wolves

The wolf moves in the grass in the middle of the bushes. — A wolf in the Bayerischer Wald National Park in Germany. Archive photo.

Relaxing the protection status of wolves would free up wolf hunting.

In December, the Committee of the BERN Convention, the European Nature Conservation Agreement, voted in favor of a change in wolf conservation. The Commission’s proposal must still pass the EU Parliament and Member States.

Finland has been in favour of relaxing the protection status of the wolf.

Strongly protected animals may only be hunted in exceptional cases if they pose a threat to farm animals, health and safety. The hunting of protected animals is not so strictly regulated.