We want new UK Environment Bill commitment to replacing animal tests for chemicals

With the UK House of Commons Environment Bill Committee about to deliberate legislation shaping UK chemical safety rules post-Brexit, we are calling on MPs to ensure that from January 2021 the government has a pro-active plan to reduce and replace chemical tests on animals.

EU chemical legislation, REACH, has resulted in a huge increase in the use of animals in European and UK laboratories. Based on EU reports, we estimate that since 2006 over 2.6 million animals have been used in chemical tests across the EU, including the UK, with many more planned. The UK reports conducting more animal tests than any other country in Europe.

An amendment tabled in the Bill Committee calls for a targets-based strategy for reduction and replacement to be written into law.

Kerry Postlewhite, our Director of Public Affairs, says: “If the UK is serious about its commitment to animal protection then our government must adopt a forward-looking Environment Bill that moves away from cruel and ineffective animal testing. Animal testing is not the answer to protecting people and planet from potentially harmful chemicals.

“Tests on animals are unreliable and their value is increasingly being questioned in scientific literature. There are better ways to ensure chemical safety and better assess risks to human and environmental health while reducing and eliminating the suffering of animals in laboratories.”