§ 8. Mr. GROVESasked the Home Secretary the number of certificates granted in 1839, 1922, 1927 and 1931, respectively, for conducting experiments upon animals; how many inspectors are engaged to watch such experiments; and the total number of experiments so attended in these years?
§ Sir J. GILMOURFigures of the number of certificates allowed to come into operation in the course of a given year are not available, and such figures would provide no definite indication of the number of experiments carried out in the year. As for the number of experiments attended by Inspectors, no information is available for 1899, but the figures for the years 1922, 1927 and 1931 are 401, 33, and 128. These figures provide no measure of the amount of inspection, Since it may be a matter of accident whether a number of brief experiments such as inoculations are performed during an Inspector's visit. Many experiments, such as feeding experiments or experiments involving inoculations or the administration of drugs, extend over several weeks, and an Inspector in the course of his visits sees thousands of animals which are undergoing such experiments. There are two Inspectors appointed to visit registered places for the purpose of securing compliance with the provisions of the Cruelty to Animals Act.