§ Mr. FREEMANasked the Home Secretary whether the experiment conducted at the Chemical Defence Experimental Station, Porton, in August, 1924, involving 92 living animals, was also classified in the annual official Report of the Home Office as one experiment?
§ Mr. CLYNESThese are reckoned as 92 experiments in the Annual Return for 1924.
§ Mr. FREEMANasked the Home Secretary whether the 131 experiments involving 719 living animals recorded by the Chemical Defence Experimental Station, 214W Porton, during 1930, are recorded in the annual official Report of the Home Office as 719 experiments, or, if not, how are they recorded?
§ Mr. CLYNESIn the case referred to, the number of experiments recorded in the Annual Return will be greater than 719. The precise figures are not yet available, but the figures for each licensee will be published in the Annual Return when it is ready. The difference between the number of animals and the number of experiments is due to the fact that in some of the cases it was necessary after the initial procedure to withdraw a small quantity of blood for examination, and each such withdrawal is treated for statistical purposes as a separate experiment.
§ Mr. FREEMANasked the Home Secretary whether he can now state the total number of experiments on living animals performed during 1930 with and without anaesthetics, and the number performed for the purpose of cancer research with and without anaesthetics?
§ Mr. CLYNESAs there are a few returns from licensees still outstanding the final figure cannot yet be given. It is not expected, however, that these will make a material difference to the total. The available returns show that 450,744 experiments were performed under the Act during 1930, of which 432,474 were without anaesthetics and 18,270 with anaesthetics. The number performed for cancer research was 25,259, of which 23,964 were without anaesthetics and 1,295 with anaesthetics.