The ethics of research involving animals

Public Consultation

The Council would like to thank everyone who contributed to the consultation on animal research. The responses reflected diverse views and provided useful and interesting information.

View individual consultation responses

Consultation paper

The consultation posed questions such as:

• Can we justify research on animals?
• How much do animals actually suffer?
• Does a mouse have a different moral status than a monkey?
• Who should fund research into alternatives?
  

Download the consultation paper

Fact-finding meetings

The Working Party held a number of fact-finding meetings with individuals and organisations as part of its research:

• Professor Michael Balls, Chairman of the Trustees of FRAME, former Head of ECVAM (European Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods, European Commission Joint Research Centre)
• Dr Gill Langley, Scientific Advisor, Dr Hadwen Trust
• Department of Biology, University of York
• Dr Christopher Springall, CRO Covance
• Representatives of the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign, the Parkinson’s Disease Society and the Cystic Fibrosis Trust
• Pfizer, Sandwich
• MORI Social Research Institute
• Animals (Scientific Procedures) Division, Home Office, and the Animals Procedures Committee
• Americans for Medical Advancement, Europeans for Medical Advancement
• Institute of Neurology, London
• Huntingdon Research Centre and Huntingdon Life Sciences