Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the report entitled, Attitudes to Animal Research 2018 published in May 2019, what her policy is on the use of dogs in medical research.

The Public Attitudes to Animal Research report is published every two years and presents the findings of a survey on public awareness of, and attitudes towards, the use of animals in scientific research. The report is commissioned by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and supports policy development and public engagement across government and the life science sector on this area.

The Government understands the concerns that many people have about the use of animals such as dogs for research purposes. For this reason, dogs are given special protection under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 that regulates their use in scientific procedures.

Advances in biomedical science and technologies – including stem cell research, in vitro systems that mimic the function of human organs, imaging and new computer modelling techniques – are all providing new opportunities to reduce reliance on the use of animals in research, including dogs. The Government supports these developments through funding for the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs).