Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to set a timeline for phasing out the use of the forced swim test in their strategy to support the development, validation and uptake of non-animal methods.

As of March 2024, the Home Office no longer grants project licences for use of the FST as a model of depression. This position is in line with recommendations from a report on the Forced Swim Test by the independent Animals in Science Committee ASC),

The Home Office Regulator has reviewed all licences authorising the use of the Forced Swim Test (FST) under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. The number of project licences that authorises the FST in Great Britain has decreased from nine to a current total of only three licences. All of these licences are due to expire by 2028.

Taking into account the ASC’s recommendations, the FST does potentially have some use in narrowly defined research contexts where there are no non-animal alternatives currently available: screening for antidepressant efficacy and studying the neurobiology of stress. The Home Office will only authorise testing in these specific circumstances and where there is robust, legitimate scientific justification.