Damning vote and positive progress

Monday, 27 April 2009 00:00

On 31 March, the European Parliament’s lead committee considering the proposal to revise the law voted for a series of changes (known as amendments) that seriously undermine the proposal from the European Commission to regulate animal testing across Europe.

 

Some of these changes would dramatically lower animal protection and weaken the law by:

• reducing the scientific justification needed to experiment on primates
• delaying indefinitely proposals to stop the trapping of wild monkeys
• ending the licensing of almost all experiments
• allowing animals to suffer severe and prolonged pain.

Progress

On the positive side, thanks to animal protection organisations and all of our dedicated supporters a number of progressive proposals were supported. Advocates for Animals has been working with Animal Defenders International and other animal protection organisations to press for the revised law to include the will of the Parliament and indeed the public to see an early end to the use of primates; we are also pressing for the objective of ending animal experiments as soon as possible to be put at the heart of the revised law. The proposals introduce measures aimed at facilitating the gradual review, reduction and replacement of many animal experiments, through:

• introducing a biannual thematic review of primate research (with a view to replacing specific experiments over time)
• introducing a biannual thematic review of specific types of experiments and the use of specific species
• expanding the role of the European Centre for Validation of Alternative Methods to encourage development, training and dissemination of alternative methods.

Advocates for Animals is working together with animal protection organisations to press for the European Parliament vote in May to hold on to these positive amendments and against those that would seriously lower animal protection.