RSPCA reaction to the Review of Using Non-Human Primates

Wednesday, 27 July 2011 3:42 PM

A review of the use of monkeys in UK medical research was published today (Wednesday). The RSPCA has made the following initial statement:

RSPCA senior scientist Maggy Jennings said: “It’s deeply worrying that it’s taken so many years for this report to emerge and now it’s here it makes recommendations for good practice that people will have assumed would already be happening.

“We agree with Bateson that for too long people have been happy to overstate the importance of experiments using non-human primates in the absence of the evidence to back up their emphatic claims.

“The RSPCA has always had grave concerns about the use of non-human primates for ethical and welfare reasons. This is the latest report in recent days* which emphasises the importance of a robust system of regulation for animal experiments. This makes it all the more concerning that the UK government is considering weakening the laws currently in place in the UK.”

-ends-

Notes to editors:

1. This is the RSPCA’s initial response to the Review of Using Non-Human Primates, led by Sir Patrick Bateson, published today (Wednesday).

2. * The Academy of Medical Sciences released a report examining the use of animals containing human material in biomedical research on Friday 22 July 2011.

RSPCA, Wilberforce Way, Southwater, Horsham, West Sussex RH13 9RS
Press office direct lines: 0300 123 0244/0288 Fax: 0303 123 0099
Duty press officer (evenings and weekends) Tel 08448 222888 and ask for pager number 828825
Email: press@rspca.org.uk Website: www.rspca.org.uk

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• animal welfare
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• rspca