We received a petition asking:
“We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to improve methods to evaluate the validity and relevance of animal experiments by requiring that (i) animal researchers are trained in experimental design and statistics (ii) each licence application includes references to systematic reviews of existing relevant studies (iii) approved applications are made available to researchers and others with relevant interest and (iv) only the highest quality experimental designs of animal studies and laboratory practice are permitted.”
Details of Petition:
“Surveys suggest that the public supports animal research providing a)it leads to improvements in human health, b)non-animal technologies are unavailable, c)it is not duplicated unnecessarily, d)it is not done for trivial reasons, e)it cannot be ethically performed in humans and f)suffering of laboratory animals is minimised. Animal experiments have been associated with important advances in medicine. However, uncertainties remain about their predictive value for human health and recent research has found serious inadequacies, both in the design and performance of animal studies. This petition calls for revisions to ensure that evidence-based research methods and training are implemented with the aim of fulfilling the conditions the public place on it’s acceptance of animal experiments in a transparent and accountable manner. The experimental designs should use concealed random allocation, blinding and adequate sample sizes and systematic reviews should be performed to reduce bias and address questions about validity, alternatives and confounding variables e.g. genetics, species differences, feeding, housing and handling in the laboratory.”
· Read the petition
· Petitions homepage
Read the Government’s response
Thank you for your e-petition about improving methods to evaluate the validity and relevance of animal experiments by requiring that:
· animal researchers are trained in experimental design and statistics;
· each licence application includes references to systematic reviews ·of existing relevant studies;
· approved applications are made available to researchers and others with relevant interest; and
· only the highest quality experimental designs of animal studies and laboratory practice are permitted.
As the regulator of animal research in the UK, the Home Office has set mandatory training requirements for project licence applicants which include experimental design, including basic statistical principles. The objective is both to impart some basic knowledge and skills, and to highlight the need to seek specialist advice as and when required.
We believe that where systematic reviews, and thematic meta-analyses of published work, are available then they do add value to the project licence application process. However, peer reviewed, high-quality, contemporary systematic reviews and subsequent analyses of animal studies are relatively rare and do not exist for many areas of research. For most proposed animal studies, there will be no relevant systematic reviews to refer to when applying for a project licence, and instead ad hoc reviews of 3Rs strategies and methods are required. In practice, reviews of research methods and findings relevant to the proposed study are already included in applications and this generally includes both published and unpublished data.
Section 24 of the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 prohibits the unauthorised disclosure by Home Office Ministers and officials of information they know or have reasonable grounds for believing to have been given in confidence relating to the use of animals in scientific procedures, other than in the discharge of their functions under the 1986 Act. However, reasonable efforts are made to proactively publish information related to the regulatory system and licensed work. We now publish details of project licences granted under the 1986 Act which provide a useful insight into the range and purpose of the projects we license – more than 1,400 abstracts have now been posted on our website. In addition, we publish both an annual statistical report of licensed animal use and an annual report by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Inspectorate, providing additional insights into the inspection programme, the assessment of proposals for animal use, and thematic reviews of common classes of animal use. The abstracts and both reports can be found at: http://scienceandresearch.homeoffice.gov.uk/animal-research/
There are a number of checks and balances in place at the level of funding bodies, research establishments, research groups, editorial boards and regulatory authorities to ensure that research undertaken using living animals is well designed and properly conducted. For example, the Home Office requires the establishment of local ethical review processes to support and facilitate high standards and also requires relevant elements of experimental design to be taken into account.
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