§ Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether(a) his Department, (b) non-departmental public bodies or executive agencies responsible to his Department and (c) consultants contracted to his Department used non-human primates in experiments to test the effects of weapons in each of the last three years. [170996]
§ Mr. IngramThe only work carried out or sponsored by the Ministry of Defence on non-human primates is that undertaken by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, (an agency of MOD) which has during the last three years conducted work using non-human primates to assess the effects and significance of human exposure to nerve agents and to develop medical countermeasures as appropriate. Additionally, work has been conducted in collaboration with allies to evaluate the performance and safety of protective countermeasures, for example, new vaccines against biological warfare agents.