Cruelty Free International calls for 2025 to be a ‘turning point’ for animal testing
Animal protection NGO Cruelty Free International is urging the government to make 2025 the turning point for animal testing in the UK.
After the Leader of the House, Lucy Powell, wished every MP and the entire country “a cruelty-free Christmas” in December, the time has come for Labour to demonstrate concrete progress towards its manifesto commitment to develop a roadmap for the phase-out of animal testing.
The roadmap, which needs an ambitious timeframe, clear milestones and achievable goals, is due to be led by Lord Patrick Vallance, Minister of State for Science, Research and Innovation. While Cruelty Free International has been given strong indication by the government that they are engaged in cross-departmental efforts to deliver the manifesto commitment, the organisation hopes that 2025 will be the year that concrete proposals and clear deliverables will be shared with civil society and the wider public.
Cruelty Free International’s ‘Creating a cruelty-free future’ report outlines initial recommendations to assist the government in their plans to phase out animal testing in the UK – none of which requires the introduction of new laws or major additional expenditure, and can be started without delay. While NGOs have welcomed early requests for recommendations, the government must show open engagement and leadership to take full advantage of available expertise and unify work across sectors and disciplines.
The world has been relying on animal experiments for drug development for many decades, yet, due to efficacy and safety concerns, 92 per cent of candidate drugs fail when tested in clinical trials despite having undergone extensive investigations in animals prior to human trials.
Quite simply, the biological differences between humans and animals – which make chocolate and grapes poisonous to dogs, and allow macaques to handle doses of paracetamol that would be deadly to people – mean that data from animal tests are often not a reliable basis for predicting reactions in humans.
Despite decades of animal research, many debilitating and life-threatening diseases still lack effective treatments. Animal testing is also linked to the manufacture of a huge range of consumer products, from cosmetics and household products to clothes, furniture, plastics, electronic and white goods, paints, dyes, and food.
Advancing regulatory acceptance of non-animal testing and increasing investment in the development of new, cruelty-free approaches would not only be good for animals and human health but also for the UK economy.
Non-animal testing is already a multi-billion-pound industry, and there is scope for so much more – yet, despite recent increases in funding and renewed recognition that Life Sciences is a key target for investment and growth, the funding for non-animal science remains a tiny percentage of the UK's total Research & Development expenditure.
Without strategic planning, the urgent need for animal-free science could be missed. Extra funding for technologies such as laboratory-grown tissues, mini-organs, 3D cell cultures, organs-on-chips, and advanced computer modelling – which can be quicker, cheaper and more reliable than animal models – has the potential to revolutionise safety testing and drug development while supporting the ultimate goal of phasing out animal testing.
Leading in animal-free science would help to establish the UK as a global power in scientific innovation and enable high-quality research relevant to the protection of human health and the environment.
Home Office statistics show that there were over 2.68m uses of animals in laboratories in Great Britain in 2023 – a decrease of just 3 per cent on 2022, and typical of a slow fall in numbers over the past decade.
Over 7,340 animals suffer in laboratories in the UK every day – that’s over 300 every hour – and Cruelty Free International’s 2021 survey shows that the public wants animal testing to end as a matter of great urgency.
Cruelty Free International’s Director of Science and Regulatory Affairs, Dr Emma Grange, said: “The potential to phase-out animal testing and make the UK a world leader in cutting-edge, animal-free science is there – we just need to seize this opportunity.
“We continue to stand ready to contribute to the development of a plan to build a world free from animal testing. A total phase-out is within our grasp if we work across society and boldly seize the opportunities presented by cutting-edge, humane and human-relevant science. But the clock is ticking for every animal in a UK laboratory. If not now, when?”
After Leader of the House, Lucy Powell, wished every MP and the entire country “a cruelty-free Christmas” in December, the time has come for Labour to demonstrate concrete progress towards its manifesto commitment to develop a roadmap for the phase-out of animal testing.
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