§ 44. Mr. Peter Freemanasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his attention has been called to an experiment on rats now being conducted in a shop in Regent Road, Salford, particulars of which have 172W been sent to him, and that such experiment is contrary to the Cruelty to Animals Act, 1876, Section 6; and what action he proposes to take.
§ Sir H. Lucas-ToothMy right hon. and learned Friend is aware that at an exhibition at the premises of the Public Health Department, Salford, with the object of impressing upon mothers the importance of giving their children cod liver oil, rats were shown. The exhibition was designed to show the superiority of rats fed on a diet to which cod liver oil had been added over rats fed on a normal diet. While he has no authority to express an opinion on a question of law, my right hon. and learned Friend finds it difficult to understand the suggestion that this exhibition was an experiment within the meaning of Section 6 of the Cruelty to Animals Act, 1876.