Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of transitioning to animal free medical research methods on public health.

The Labour Manifesto commits to “partner with scientists, industry, and civil society as we work towards the phasing out of animal testing”.

Recent developments in technology, in particular cell biology, organoids and AI, promise a step-change in the utility of alternatives to animal testing, which are expected to be more accurate than current animal-based approaches. These alternatives have the potential to improve understanding of human disease, reduce research development time and improve efficacy of therapeutics, providing substantial benefits for public health. The Government will publish a strategy for supporting the development, validation and uptake of alternative methods later this year.