AR-News: UK tech committee ignores vivisection's failure

Thu May 13 00:12:53 EDT 2004

This group has ignored scientific realities to back animal testing (see 4th 
paragraph) and show yet again the need to pressurise the government and 
industry using scientific evidence. Replies to complainants have been 
suitably ignorant and underline the fact that these organisations need to be 
shamed into developing from outside, as they constantly refuse to develop 
internally.- VIN

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE

       HOUSE OF COMMONS

PRESS NOTICE

Committee Office, House of Commons, No. 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA

Tel. Nos. 020 7219 2793-2794 (Fax. No. - 0896) email: 
scitechcom at parliament.uk

No. 38 - Session 2003-2004  12 May 2004

PUBLICATION OF REPORT

WITHIN REACH: THE EU'S NEW CHEMICALS STRATEGY

The Science and Technology Committee today publishes its Sixth Report of 
Session 2003-04, Within Reach: The EU's New Chemicals Strategy (HC 172-I). 
The Report considers the European Commission's Proposals for a new EU 
Chemicals Strategy, which were published on 29 October 2003.

The report concludes that the Commission's "REACH" Proposals are an 
acceptable alternative to existing legislation. The Committee found that 
more needed to be done to adapt the Registration of chemicals to ensure that 
where the risks are well known, chemicals of high concern are Registered 
first but that the Registration of chemicals of low concern can be delayed. 
To this end, a single pre-Registration phase should be introduced.

The Government is pressing for one-substance-one Registration. The Committee 
found that there were many complicating factors involved and that while this 
should be the norm, it could never be the rule. The Government's position 
was considered to be untenable.

The Committee expressed concerns that insufficient was being done by the 
European Commission to assess the number of extra animals required for 
testing to comply with the legislation and that they should be making the 
case that this was a price worth paying for the benefits to the environment 
and human health. It was felt that the introduction of non-animal tests was 
too slow and that REACH presented an opportunity to change this.

The proposed European Chemicals Agency needs to be a strong, authoritative 
and pragmatic, the Committee concluded, if it is to ensure consistency 
across the EU, the rapid Evaluation of chemicals of concern and a sensible 
approach to enforced substitution.

Impact assessments conducted so far by the Commission and others have failed 
to achieve widespread confidence. Since it is unlikely that the European 
Parliament will consider the legislation by the end of 2004, there is an 
opportunity for a further study which can command the support of all 
parties.

Chairman of the Committee, Dr Ian Gibson, said "Our look at the European 
chemicals legislation has convinced us that not everything that comes out of 
Brussels is all bad, but the Government has got to keep the pressure up to 
avoid landing us with expensive and bureaucratic legislation that does 
nothing to save the whale, or anything else".

Hard copies of the Report can be obtained from TSO outlets and from the 
Parliamentary Bookshop, 12 Bridge Street, Parliament Square, London SW1A 2JX 
(020 7219 3890) by quoting HC 172-I. The text of the Report will also be 
available via the Committee=s internet homepage: 
www.parliament.uk/commons/selcom/s&thome.htm

Further information on the work of the Committee can be obtained from 
Committee staff on
020 7219 2793/4. Previous press notices and publications are available on 
our website.

Notes for Editors

1.      Under the terms of Standing Order No. 152 the Committee is empowered 
to examine the "expenditure, policy and administration of the Office of 
Science and Technology and its associated public bodies". The Committee was 
appointed on 12 November 2001.

2.      The Committee's inquiry was announced on 29 October 2003 in Press 
Notice No. 47, Session 2002-03.
3.      The Committee took evidence from: WWF, Greenpeace, British Retail 
Consortium, Marks and Spencer and the British Union for the Abolition of 
Vivisection on 19 January 2004; the EC Directorates General for Environment 
and Enterprise on 2 February 2003; and the Chemical Industry Association, 
the Rt Hon Alun Michael MP, Minister of State for Rural Affairs and Local 
Environmental Quality and officials on 9 February.

Membership of the Committee is as follows:

Dr Ian Gibson (Chairman)        (Lab, Norwich North)
Paul Farrelly           (Lab, Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Dr Evan Harris          (Lib Dem, Oxford West and Abingdon)
Kate Hoey               (Lab, Vauxhall)
Dr Brian Iddon          (Lab, Bolton South East)

Mr Robert Key         (Con, Salisbury)
Mr Tony McWalter       (Lab, Hemel Hempstead)
Dr Andrew Murrison      (Con, Westbury)
Geraldine Smith       (Lab, Morecambe and Lunesdale)
Bob Spink                     (Con, Castle Point)
Dr Desmond Turner       (Lab, Brighton Kemptown)

Animal experiments have:
a 63% failure rate when detecting human carcinogens
a 75-95% failure rate for detecting drug side effects
a 70% failure rate for detecting drugs which cause birth defects
Success rates lower than those achieved by uneducated guesswork.

This is not science!!

Recommended website: The Absurdity of vivisection
http://vivisection-absurd.org.uk/

Information on animal research available free by EMail from 
vivisectionkills at hotmail.com

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