Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the non-technical summaries for project licences granted in October – December 2025, what steps she is taking to phase out the use of animals in science.

On 11th November 2025 the government published “Replacing animals in science: A strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods” which outlines the steps we will take to achieve this. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/replacing-animals-in-science-strategy/replacing-animals-in-science-a-strategy-to-support-the-development-validation-and-uptake-of-alternative-methods(opens in a new tab) ).

The Home Office publishes non-technical summaries (NTS) for every project licence granted under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. The non-technical summaries include the species and number of animals expected to be used over the duration of the project licence.