Never has there been a more important time to help animals in laboratories with the UK government currently transposing the European Directive on lab animal welfare into UK law.

 After a hard-fought 7-year campaign in Europe, we have new rules on animal experiments.  Now, the UK Home Office is reviewing the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, to bring it into line with the new European Directive. 

The NAVS has outlined a list of key demands for the new UK regulations. These include:

·         UK rules that are stricter than the EU Directive must be maintained.

·         Phase-out of wild-caught primates and specific measures to reduce the use of primates.

·         There should be a limit to the severity of procedures which animals are allowed to undergo.

·         Non-animal methods should be implemented – specific replacement policies; a new UK laboratory established to develop and validate these alternatives.

·         Regular reviews of specific animal experiments – a system to target specific tests for replacement – to be conducted in consultation with all stakeholders, e.g., NAVS.  

During the presentation NAVS will expand on these points, part of our ‘Cutting Edge not Knife Edge’ campaign, to contribute to this fight for advanced, humane science over unreliable, unethical and unnecessary animal experiments.

Born in Wales, Kate Werner's instinctual love for animals and the natural world took her to London to study a bachelors of science psychology degree and primate biology and conservation at Masters level, researching behaviour and environmental enrichment in captive western lowland gorillas. Kate has worked voluntarily for several animal welfare and conservation organisations including People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, The Gorilla Organisation and The Grasslands Trust building an impressive skill set which includes PR, campaigning and event organisation. Now, as a campaigner for the National Anti-Vivisection Society and Animal Defenders International she lobbies government and campaigns against animals in experimentation working on the NAVS “Cutting Edge Not Knife Edge” campaign. Her focus is the transposition of the new EU Directive into UK law and ultimately the use of animals for the development of cosmetic, household and medicinal products being replaced with humane, non-animal methods.