Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many (a) cats, (b) dogs and (c) horses were rehomed after their release from laboratories following research in 2012.

I have been asked to reply on behalf of the Home Office.

The Home Office does not hold the information requested.

Under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, authority may be given to

re-home animals where those animals were bred or held for supply for use in

regulated procedures, or were intended for use in regulated procedures, or have

been used in regulated procedures. This may also apply to animals which are

being kept under the care of the Named Veterinary Surgeon after completing

procedures, and is always contingent on our acceptance of certain reassurances

relating to Section 17A of the Act. Records of each animal re-homed would be

kept locally at the licensed establishment so that they can be available to

Home Office Inspectors on request.

European Directive 2010/63/EU, which was implemented in the UK and other

Member States on 1 January 2013, does not provide legal grounds on which the UK

can impose a mandatory obligation of re-homing under the Animals (Scientific

Procedures) Act 1986. Nevertheless, we have provided guidance on re-homing

animals in our Guidance on the Operation of the Animals (Scientific Procedures)

Act 1983, section 5.21.