Link to Commons debate.

Replace, Reduce & Refine (Animal Testing) Motion

A motion to encourage the use of “The Three Rs” philosophy in medical testing.

This house recognises that:

(a) Medical research is extremely important and that medical testing on animals is a necessity at this time, but is not a solution.

(b) 600,000 animals were subjected to experiments in the UK last year, that even the researchers considered had caused them moderate or severe suffering.

(c) Experiments are still being conducted for toxicological tests where there are valid non-animal alternatives available. These include skin irritation (340 tests in 2015), eye irritation (173 tests in 2015), acute lethal toxicity tests (9,183 tests in 2015) and pyrogenicity (fever) tests (2,609 tests in 2015 on live rabbits).

(d) The Three Rs stand for: replace the use of animals with alternatives, reduce the number of animals used to a minimum and refine the way experiments are carried out so that animals suffer as little as possible (this includes proper and comfortable housing).

This house urges that:

(a) The “Replace, Reduce and Refine” philosophy is encouraged across the Medical testing industry.

(b) Money is invested, by the Department for Animal Welfare, Agriculture and Environment, into the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement & Reduction of Animals in Research, so more alternativen can be found.

(c) Alternatives, such as the In Vitro Method and the In Silico model, should be pursued and developed.

Written by /u/real-friends, submitted by The Rt Hon. jb567 MP AL, Her Majesty's Principal Secretary for the Home Office, Member of Parliament for the East Midlands, and is sponsored by the Labour Party.

The voting period for this bill will end at 10PM BST on the 28th of November.

Vote Aye, No or Abstain. Comments with anything else will be deleted. Comments that are edited will be void and not counted.

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For full clarifications on the voting system see this post.