Written question asked by Henry Smith (Conservative) on Tuesday, 16 April 2013, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 18 April 2013. It was answered by James Brokenshire (Conservative) on Wednesday, 24 April 2013 on behalf of the Home Office.

Animal Experiments

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps she takes to ensure that non-technical summaries of applications for projects licences under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (a) are a fair summary of the applications before she publishes them and (b) highlight the anticipated harms to animals and benefits from the research.

[152182]

Answer

All project licence applications must be accompanied by a project summary written in non-technical terms. The project summary must explain objectives of the programme of work specified in the application; describe the types of animal and estimate the number of each type that will be used; predict the harm to the animals that will be caused and benefits that will be gained by carrying out the programme of work; and demonstrate how the applicant will comply with the principles of replacement, reduction and refinement throughout the project.

Home Office staff will assess the non-technical summaries to ensure they are a fair summary of the applications before they are published and that they highlight the anticipated harms to animals and benefits from the research as part of the process of assessing the project licence application.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 152182; 561 cc921-2W
Session: 2012-13
Subjects: Animal welfare Applications Animal experiments Licensing Imperial College London
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk

Animal Experiments

Secondary information

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