Target Zero for animal experiments in the UK

We have joined forces with Cruelty Free International and Animal Free Research UK to launch our #TargetZero campaign to urge the UK Government to create and publicise a clear and ambitious phase-out of animal experimentation.

The stats

Too many animals continue to suffer in Britain’s laboratories every year – with over 90% of drugs that prove promising in animal trials failing in humans, either due to lack of effectiveness or safety concerns.  

While there was a welcome decrease in the number of animal experiments in 2020, 2.9 million animals were still subjected to experimentation. That is 2.9 million animals too many. And the stats are worrying:

• The number of experiments on animals has only dropped by 1% annually over the past decade.
• There has been an increase in experimentation on cats (up by 11%), dogs (up by 3%), horses (up by 3%).
• The number of experiments on horses has risen by 29% in the last decade alone.
• There has been an increase in experimentation on rhesus macaques (up by 77%).
• 115 experiments were conducted on dogs to satisfy plant protection product legislation, which is likely to include pesticides testing. There were 46 such tests in 2019, which means these experiments have increased by 150%.

Celebrity support

Celebrities Evanna Lynch, Lucy Watson, and Lesley Nicol have teamed up with ourselves, Cruelty Free International and Animal Free Research UK in support of our calls to end animal experimentation. 

The stars of Harry Potter, Made in Chelsea, and Downton Abbey have recreated an iconic photo from 1919 protesting against animal experiments, to highlight how millions of animals are still subjected to the same cruel experimentation that they were 100 years ago.

The historic photo was captured in 1919 when three women from the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection, today known as Cruelty Free International, protested in Parliament Square while the Dogs (Protection) Bill was being debated in Parliament.  

The petition

You can sign the #TargetZero petition, calling on the UK Government to end its reliance on Victorian science and bring forward a pro-active plan to end animal experimentation, here.  

The regulation of scientific procedures is devolved to the UK Government. However, we believe that the Scottish Government also has a role to play in encouraging a phase out of animal testing. We continue to urge the Scottish Government to promote the rapid development and utilisation of alternatives to animal research and press the UK Government to take action to replace animal testing. The #TargetZero campaign, therefore, will also be seeking the support of MSPs.