Historic Moment for Animals! EU Parliament Votes Overwhelmingly In Favour of Plan to End Cruel Experiments
Today is a monumental day for animals in EU laboratories. The European Parliament just voted in favour of developing an action plan to end experiments on animals. MEPs supported a “motion for a resolution” to accelerate the transition to innovation without the use of animals in research, regulatory testing, and education. This means that MEPs have directed the European Commission to work with scientists, including those from PETA, for a future without any animal testing!
“The European Parliament understands that the time is right for this action plan, because of the work that scientists have been doing to better understand the limitations of animal studies and the potential of non-animal models. There are no excuses to perpetuate the current level of reliance on animal experiments. It is clear that an ambitious phase-out plan, with clear milestones and achievable objectives, is the next step needed to start reducing significantly the use of animals in science.” Tilly Metz, MEP, Chairwoman of the Animals in Science Working Group of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals
“It is now in the hands of the European Commission to establish this EU-wide Action Plan, and we expect the Commission will make this a high-level priority – Because if the Commission is serious about its commitments to EU citizens, it needs to start now the dialogue with all parties to effectively coordinate funding, education and milestones to accelerate the transition to non-animal science” added Jytte Guteland MEP (S&D, SE).
“This action plan to phase out animal experiments is a win-win situation for humans, other animals, and the environment. The European Commission and Member States urgently need to increase their efforts to reduce, replace and end the use and misuse of animals for scientific purposes. Animal experiments are still used in many different areas of the Commission’s responsibilities, therefore a coherent approach is essential to achieve safety and sustainability, without animal testing. We need to use science. Not animals.”, concluded Anja Hazekamp MEP (The Left, NL), Chairwoman of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals.
History Was Made Today
This is a historic, precedent-setting vote. The European Parliament is calling for the European Commission to create an action plan to end all experiments on animals and to prioritise funding for non-animal methods. The plan should include an ambitious timeline and a list of milestones.
Why Is This Important?
This vote means that the European Parliament intends to actively phase out the use of animals for all scientific purposes.
And they’re not alone. PETA and other animal protection groups Cruelty Free Europe, Eurogroup for Animals, the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments, and Humane Society International Europe have campaigned for MEPs to pass this motion for a resolution (an agreement by MEPs to take a formal stance on an issue).
PETA’s Research Modernisation Deal – a comprehensive roadmap and strategy to optimise investment in human-based research to cure disease and improve safety assessment approaches – was shared with MEPs on the Animals in Science Working Group of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals, who have worked to develop and pass the parliamentary motion.
We’re now calling on the European Commission to act urgently on the will of the Parliament and to use our Research Modernisation Deal to deliver a Europe in which no animals are used in experiments.
EU Citizens Want Experiments on Animals to End
It’s clear: the public expects the EU to be at the forefront of the movement to end animal testing. Within just two weeks, nearly 120,000 EU citizens have supported the new European Citizens’ Initiative “Save Cruelty Free Cosmetics – Commit to a Europe Without Animal Testing”
More than 100 major actors in the scientific community also supported the motion for a resolution. They believe the resolution is crucial to identifying common research and funding priorities and ultimately to achieving the transition to animal-free science.
Join Us for a Cruelty-Free Future
Now, the UK needs a plan to phase out all experiments on animals, too.
Call on the government to embrace real science rather than continuing with “business as usual” by tormenting and killing animals in experiments and creating further obstacles to medical and scientific progress.
Sign the petition to support our Research Modernisation Deal and help animals in used in cruel experiments across the UK:
