Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether funding for a new laboratory at Porton Down for research into protection against biological threats, as announced in The Defence Investment Plan, will fund, support or increase the use of animals in testing or research.

Dstl is committed to the principles of Reduction, Replacement and Refinement (‘the 3Rs’) in its use of laboratory animals. The possibility of using alternative methodologies is considered as part of the initial planning of every proposed project, and Home Office licences for animal experimentation are only granted under ASPA if significant benefits will be gained from the research, and all alternative approaches have been carefully considered and implemented where scientifically feasible.