§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he plans to review the need for the continued use of the LD50 test on animals; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorScientific opinion is at present moving in the direction of reducing the number of LD50 tests, and the British Toxicology Society has recently published a special report recommending the adoption of an alternative procedure for acute toxicity testing. My right hon. and learned Friend welcomes any move away from LD50 testing where it is found to be scientifically unnecessary.
§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he proposes, in relation to the use of animals, to ban eye tests of chemical substances where the same chemicals have already been found to cause skin irritation; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorNo. Substances which are irritant to the skin are not necessarily irritant to the eye, which is a unique organ, and in some cases may still need to be tested690W in the eye. I am sure that in general such cases are approached with considerable care and caution and that there is widespread acceptance of the need to consider alternative methods.
§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will consult his European counterparts and press for the establishment of a European data base storage system for the results of experiments on animals; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MellorPart of the grant to the fund for the replacement of animals in medical experiments which my right hon. and learned Friend announced on 26 June at column 381 will be used to examine the possibility of establishing a database on experience in cell culture techniques. Until we know more about the feasibility and reliability of such databases I do not think a European initiative on our part could be justified.