Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Spending Review 2025, published on 11 June 2025, what proportion of the £22.6 billion increase to research and development funding by 2029-30 will be allocated to support the (a) development, (b) validation and (c) uptake of alternative methods to animal testing.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) invests to support research which can lead to alternatives, such as organ-on-a-chip, cell-based assays, functional genomics and computer modelling. These are categorised as basic research, so calculating funding for alternative methods specifically is not possible. Future investment will be determined by internal allocations of DSIT’s spending review settlement announced on 11.06.25. UKRI also invests £10 million annually in the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs) and is conducting a five-year review to guide future investment.

The Government will publish a strategy to support non-animal alternatives later this year.