02 July 2009 - Green Party MEP for South East England Dr Caroline Lucas will submit a 1.5 million strong petition to 10 Downing Street today (Thursday 2nd July) at 12.30pm, calling on the Government to develop a ‘road map’ to move towards the end of animal testing.

The Euro-MP and Green Party leader will be part of an all-party delegation organised by animal welfare group Uncaged, which has collected the signatures to comprise what is understood to be the largest animal welfare petition in British history.

The signatures have been collected from towns and cities across the UK, including several hundred thousand from across the South East. The petition is being submitted at a critical point in the historic debate over animal testing - the UK Government is currently asking for the public’s views on animal research ahead of discussions with other governments over a new European Union law.

The Uncaged petition cites moral and scientific reasons to work towards eliminating animal experiments. Laboratory experiments on animals often cause severe suffering, and evidence is emerging that shows that animal tests do not reliably predict human reactions – while non-animal methods can offer greater accuracy and safety assurance.

Yet despite this evidence, the number of animal experiments in Britain has actually increased since 2001 to over 3 million a year. Dr Lucas is calling for action to reverse that trend and work towards replacing animal experiments with viable non-animal alternatives.

Dr Lucas MEP said:

"Indifference towards cruelty has no place in a civilised society. Yet many animals still suffer in painful and frequently misleading experiments. Now is the time for the Government to get a grip on this issue and push for a practical road map towards eliminating animal testing.  Uncaged’s hugely popular petition demonstrates that the public want targeted, positive action from the Government to make animal testing history." 

ENDS