Animal rights charity Peta has criticised Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones for lobbying on behalf of an animal testing company.
Mr Jones this week asked to meet science minister George Freeman to discuss ways of helping Labcorp Drug Development expand over the next five years.
The American-owned company, which has a site on Otley Road in Harrogate and was previously called Covance, frequently attracts demonstrators waving placards such as ‘puppy killers work here’.
A vigil for the animals tested on at Labcorp will be held in Harrogate town centre on Sunday afternoon.
Labcorp’s activities have also been criticised by comedian Ricky Gervais and actor Peter Egan.
Dr Julia Baines, Peta’s science policy manager, said Labcorp’s “monstrous laboratory causes immense suffering and has shown that it is out of touch with state-of-the-art replacements for the caging and use of animals”.
Ms Baines added:
“Peta is rushing a copy of our research modernisation deal to Mr Jones to encourage him to wake up to the advent of progressive, non-animal research. Good science and sound ethics can propel us towards the shared goal of better health.”
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Gervais and Egan spoke out after a film by campaign group Free the MBR Beagles showed beagles being loaded into vans from a breeding site in Cambridgeshire and transported to Labcorp in Harrogate for testing.
Gervais said it was “heartbreaking to hear these puppies crying out for mercy” and called for “an immediate ban on this shocking animal cruelty”.
‘New drugs must be tested in animals’
Mr Jones did not respond to the Stray Ferret’s request for a response to the claims.
The Conservative MP said in the Commons this week that Labcorp was “at the heart of new medicine development both in the UK and across Europe and has played a role in the life science industry response to covid”.
A spokesman for Labcorp said:
“Labcorp Drug Development takes very seriously our ethical and regulatory responsibilities to treat research animals with the greatest care and respect. In addition to being the right thing to do, the proper care of research animals is fundamental to sound scientific research and the ability to develop life-saving and life-enhancing new medicines for cancer, deadly infections, heart disease, leukaemia, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis, and many other disabling diseases.
“New drugs must be tested in animals before human clinical trials to ensure the safety of patients and volunteers and there are clear links between excellent animal welfare and medical breakthroughs.
“Labcorp Drug Development, formerly known as Covance adheres to, or exceeds, all national and international standards of animal welfare, including the European Council Directive 2010/63/EU, the U.S. Animal Welfare Act and the requirements set forth by the United States Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Public Health Service Policy on the Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. We are also among the more than 70 original signers of the United Kingdom’s Concordat on Openness on Animal Research.
“Additionally, Labcorp Drug Development participates in the voluntary accreditation programme of AAALAC International, formerly known as Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care, which includes on-site visits to ensure that we are meeting or exceeding prescribed standards for policies, animal housing and management, veterinary care and facilities. AAALAC International is a private, nonprofit organisation that promotes the humane treatment of animals in science through voluntary accreditation and assessment programmes.”
Ripon man tried to save kittens thrown from moving car
A Ripon man who tried to save kittens thrown from a moving car has spoken of the moment one of them died in his hands.
The council worker, who does not want to be named, was driving a recycling van at 2pm between Water Skellgate and Bondgate Green last Thursday.
He saw something in the road and then later saw, a couple of cars in front, a person on the driver’s side of a brown or gold car throw a kitten in the air.
Susan Lund, the man’s wife, recalled the moment to the Stray Ferret:
“He stopped the van and picked up the little kitten. It was still breathing but it soon died in his hands.
“The kitten’s face was all smashed in from the impact. My husband was very upset by all of this.
“I think it is beyong shocking and absolutely abhorrent. They were just tiny babies. The person who did this was evil.”
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The couple believe that they were just six to eight weeks old and were tabby type kittens.
Animal rights group PETA has heard about the incident and offered a £2,000 reward to find those responsible.
Elisa Allen, PETA director, said:
“A person capable of deliberately causing a helpless animal this kind of suffering demonstrates a deeply worrying psychological state and must be found.
“Someone in the area must have seen something or know something about the cruel individual(s) who committed this callous act.”
Anyone who saw the incident have been urged to call the police on 101 and quote reference number 12200204632.