Primates: Animal Experiments

(asked on 11th November 2016) - View Source

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what criteria her Department applies when considering applications for licencing neuroscience research on (a) non-human primates in general and (b) on primates which involves head and/or body restraint and/or fluid and/or food restriction in particular.


Answered by
Ben Wallace Portrait
Ben Wallace
This question was answered on 29th November 2016

Animal welfare is at the forefront of any decision to use animals in research, and the Regulator requires robust evidence that the research complies fully with the principles of the 3Rs (replacement, refinement and reduction). In addition, Inspectors require a justification for the use of non-human primates, setting out what results they contribute to the project that no other animal could provide.

Applications which involve head and/or body restraint and/or fluid and/or food restriction also require particular explanation and justification as to why those techniques are needed and how they can be refined to reduce suffering. The Home Office regulator considers every application, including the associated severity assessment, for a project licence on a case by case basis.

Home Office Inspectors, all with veterinary or medical qualifications, conduct a harm-benefit analysis to ensure that any harm that may be caused to animals is justified by the potential benefits. The regulator has published operational guidance, detailing how project licence applications are assessed, and further advice on how the harm-benefit analysis process applies to all project licence assessments.

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