The Petition of the students of Coloma Convent High School and the people of Croydon,
Declares that cosmetics testing on animals is unethical and should be banned.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to bring in a bill to outlaw the testing of cosmetics on animals.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.—[Presented by Mr Andrew Pelling, Official Report, 6 April 2010; Vol. 508, c. 944 .]
[P000818]
Observations from the Secretary of State for the Home Department:
In 1997-98, the Government secured a voluntary ban on the testing of cosmetic finished products and ingredients on animals in the United Kingdom. We did this because we believed that there was inadequate justification for using animals given the benefits of these products and the alternative tests available. After 13 years of negotiations, other European Union (EU) countries agreed to the phasing in of a near-total ban on the sale of animal-tested cosmetic products throughout the EU from 2009. The European Cosmetics Directive defines cosmetics to include not only vanity products but also other products such as toothpaste, baby care products and sun cream.
We cannot foresee any circumstances under which we would be prepared to issue licences under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 for testing on cosmetic finished products and ingredients.