§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent research he has(a) commissioned and (b) evaluated to assess whether experiments on animals can be scientifically reproduced using other methods and subjects. [176778]
§ Caroline FlintThe Home Office has not commissioned or evaluated any formal research to demonstrate that experiments on animals cannot be scientifically reproduced using other methods and subjects, and has no plans to do so. Instead, the assessment of project licence applications under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 focuses on these issues on a case by case basis. Under the 1986 Act, the use of animals in regulated procedures is prohibited where a scientifically valid, non-animal alternative is available.