PETITION: Improve Standards of Animal Welfare in European Laboratories

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Improve Standards of Animal Welfare in European Laboratories Posted by: "TONY GALLETT" from_tpg from_tpg Thu Oct 25, 2007 12:25 pm (PST) TO: All People Who Care The European Commission (EC) is currently reviewing Directive 86/609/EEC, which sets out the rules for animal experimentation across the whole of Europe. There is still time to make a difference to the final draft. Over 10,000 primates are used in experiments in Europe every year with the UK being Europe’s largest single user followed by France and Germany. A new European Chemical Testing Policy called REACH proposes to Test 30,000 Chemicals of every kind - from those used in industrial processes to the ingredients of consumer products - on Millions of animals from mice to fish to dogs, causing untold suffering. This Directive should help these animals while still improving standards. The European Commission itself acknowledges that non-animal replacements "...have the potential to provide robust information through quality-controlled, state-of-the- art tests which are faster and less cost-intensive than classical animal-based tests". It has launched a Community Action Plan for the Protection and Welfare of Animals. This explicitly states "The final aim is to replace animal experiments with methods not entailing the use of an

animal." It is in all our interest that Animal Testing is replaced with Alternatives based on Human Biology not Animals. For evidence that superior Alternative Research & Testing is replacing Animal Testing visit http://www.drhadwen trust.org/ Please sign "Replace all Animal Experiments in Europe" http://www.endeuani maltests. org/ Now political pressure is needed to encourage EU legislators to do everything they can to maximise non-animal replacement efforts. Contact your MEPs and urge them to use the revision process of Directive 86/609/EC as an opportunity to

update the Standards of Animal Welfare in European Laboratories and make replacing with Alternatives a priority. For contact details of your MEPs visit http://www.europarl .europa.eu Please tell your friends and colleagues to do the same. More information on Animal Testing from http://www.peta. org/ http://www.buav. org Everyone can help and you can make a difference. Thank Youhttp://www.chooseveg.com/meet-your-meat.asp The world is a

dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it. -Albert Einstein