We want UK Government vaccine taskforce to prioritise coordinated and humane response to coronavirus
We have written to the UK Government calling for a focus on the use of humane and human-relevant methods in the search for a coronavirus vaccine.
Last week the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy announced the launch of a new vaccine taskforce in an effort to find a treatment for COVID-19 as soon as possible. While we welcome Government funding for research projects to speed up the production of a vaccine, we want to see humane and human-relevant methods bring prioritised and the study of the virus in humans. We also want assurance that projects are coordinated to prevent unnecessary duplicated or repeat animal tests.
We are concerned about suffering being inflicted on thousands of animals around the world in coronavirus research, including monkeys, dogs, cats, ferrets, and mice. Instead of falling back on animals, that only partially approximate the behaviour of COVID-19 in humans, we call for more resources to go towards studying the virus in humans to help increase our understanding of the disease, treat patients, and limit the spread of corona.
Dr Katy Taylor, our Director of Science and Regulatory Affairs, says: “As huge numbers of animals are being used and millions of pounds are being spent on trying to find a solution to the coronavirus, it’s vital that the scientific and technical merits and ethical aspects of research is robustly assessed in each and every case.
“The suffering of animals used in tests presents a significant ethical issue for society as a whole. We want assurance from the Government that research efforts are coordinated and that humane, human-relevant studies will be prioritised to avoid the unnecessary suffering of thousands of animals in UK laboratories.”