UK's strict animal testing standards to stay
The Government has confirmed that the UK's animal testing standards will not be relaxed in spite of their being stricter than is mandated by the latest European Union (EU) Directive on the issue. Home Office Minister Lynne Featherstone has also confirmed that the use of the centralised system for the approval of research licences would remain in place and that special protection for primates, cats and dogs would remain extant.
Welcoming the new EU Directive, Chief Executive of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) Professor Douglas Kell said that "Harmonising standards ensures that researchers collaborating across European borders are working together to achieve animal welfare with a common understanding...This is increasingly important in areas like livestock diseases where researchers are working together to combat emerging threats".
However, Director of Research and Toxicology at Humane Society International/UK Troy Seidle has argued that "(It) is unlikely to do anything to significantly reduce the number of animals subjected to experiments. This response seems largely about maintaining the status quo which means maintaining an already flawed system that is insufficiently scrutinised with independence or scientific rigour."
Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.
