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<p> </p><p>The information asked for is not held centrally and could only be obtained
at <br>disproportionate cost.<br><br>The Government only authorises procedures on
animals after rigorous checks. <br>Under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986
there is a statutory <br>requirement for scrutiny by, in the first instance, the Animal
Welfare Ethical <br>Review Body at the Establishment where the work will be performed,
and then an <br>assessment is made by the Home Office Inspectorate. In addition, projects
are <br>referred to the Animals in Science Committee for scrutiny where they propose
<br>the use of non-human primates in severe protocols and other projects that ministers
<br>consider require further consideration. <br><br>One of the key factors in the
assessment of licence applications is the <br>harm-benefit analysis, which has been
part of our assessment process since <br>1986. The parameters considered in this analysis
are described in Appendix I of <br>the Operational Guidance to the 1986 Act. A harm-benefit
analysis determines <br>whether the proposed harms to the animals are justified by
the likely benefits to be <br>delivered from the project. Inspectors give advice on
minimising harms during <br>their assessment of project licence applications. Licensees
have a legal <br>responsibility to ensure that work is undertaken on animals in the
least severe <br>manner possible whilst delivering their scientific objectives. This
year we <br>are undertaking a review of the harm-benefit analysis process, with advice
from <br>the Animals in Science Committee, to determine if there are further refinements
<br>we can make to the process.<br><br>I am committed to working to reduce the number
of animals used in scientific <br>procedures. The Coalition Commitment delivery plan
"Working to reduce the use <br>of animals in research" was published in
February 2014. In particular, the Home <br>Office Inspectorate is working with the
Royal Society for the Prevention of <br>Cruelty to Animals on methods of refinement
of the most severe models to avoid <br>or reduce animal suffering. This has included
careful consideration of models <br>of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis,
seizures, rheumatoid arthritis <br>and sepsis. Inspectors are actively promulgating
the recommendations from each <br>of these reports.<br><br>In addition, the Home Office
has published advisory notes on recording and <br>reporting actual severity, as required
by the transposed European Directive <br>from 2013. From data collected we will provide
clarity on the burden of harm <br>and, over time, should give an indication of the
effectiveness of refinement <br>methods, particularly for the most severe procedures.<br><br>It
is imporant to note that procedures classified as severe represent only a <br>small
percentage of total procedures.</p><p> </p>
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