Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will take steps to reduce the number of dogs used for medical experimentation.

Our annual statistics show that in 2014 less than 0.1% of animals used in research in Great Britain are dogs. Dogs are primarily used in procedures for regulatory testing. They are also used in other procedures such as nutritional studies and to better understand naturally occurring diseases and to develop treatments for dogs themselves.

The Home Office is responsible for regulating the use of dogs in research under the Ani-mals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. Dogs are a specially protected species under the Act and the Home Office will grant a project licence for a programme of work using dogs only where the purpose of the programme of work specified in the licence can be achieved only by their use; or where it is not practicable to obtain other suitable animals.

Since 2010 the number of procedures performed on dogs has dropped nearly 30% from 5,782 in 2010 to 4,107 in 2014.