Home Department written question – answered at on 10 June 2014.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what scientific purposes she has licensed procedures on animals that were likely to cause severe suffering since 2010; and what steps the Government is taking to reduce the number of animals experiencing severe suffering in scientific procedures.
The information asked for is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
The Government only authorises procedures on animals after rigorous checks. Under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 there is a statutory requirement for scrutiny by, in the first instance, the Animal Welfare Ethical Review Body at the Establishment where the work will be performed, and then an assessment is made by the Home Office Inspectorate. In addition, projects are referred to the Animals in Science Committee for scrutiny where they propose the use of non-human primates in severe protocols and other projects that ministers consider require further consideration.
One of the key factors in the assessment of licence applications is the harm-benefit analysis, which has been part of our assessment process since 1986. The parameters considered in this analysis are described in Appendix I of the Operational Guidance to the 1986 Act. A harm-benefit analysis determines whether the proposed harms to the animals are justified by the likely benefits to be delivered from the project. Inspectors give advice on minimising harms during their assessment of project licence applications. Licensees have a legal responsibility to ensure that work is undertaken on animals in the least severe manner possible whilst delivering their scientific objectives. This year we are undertaking a review of the harm-benefit analysis process, with advice from the Animals in Science Committee, to determine if there are further refinements we can make to the process.
I am committed to working to reduce the number of animals used in scientific procedures. The Coalition Commitment delivery plan "Working to reduce the use of animals in research" was published in February 2014. In particular, the Home Office Inspectorate is working with the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals on methods of refinement of the most severe models to avoid or reduce animal suffering. This has included careful consideration of models of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, seizures, rheumatoid arthritis and sepsis. Inspectors are actively promulgating the recommendations from each of these reports.
In addition, the Home Office has published advisory notes on recording and reporting actual severity, as required by the transposed European Directive from 2013. From data collected we will provide clarity on the burden of harm and, over time, should give an indication of the effectiveness of refinement methods, particularly for the most severe procedures. It is important to note that procedures classified as severe represent only a small percentage of total procedures.
Yes2 people think so
No9 people think not
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