Research winning war with extremists, says group

Britain's researchers are winning the war against animal rights extremism, with tougher legislation, stronger policing, and public approval giving scientists renewed confidence in speaking out on the issue, the Research Defense Society (RDS) said on Wednesday (August 23).The announcement arrives one year to the day since extremists forced the closure of Darley Oaks guinea pig farm in Staffordshire, UK. The case rose to national prominence when the grave of a relative of the family that ran the farm was dug up and her body stolen.Simon Festing, executive director of RDS -- a 98-year-old organization which promotes the benefits of animal research -- said the event was a turning point in the struggle between animal rights extremism and researchers who use animals. "Twelve months on, I believe we have witnessed a sea-change in the environment for animal research," he said in a statement. Sophie Petit-Zeman, from the Association of Medical Research Charities (AMRC), agreed. "An event like that put extremist methods in such an appalling place that people felt riled-up enough to speak out," she told The Scientist.In May this year, four animal rights campaigners were jailed for disinterring the corpse. In the same month, a poll in The Telegraph newspaper showed that 70% of people supported animal testing.Britain's police have also arrested other key activists in the past year, with prosecutions underway. Petit-Zeman said the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act, which became law in 2005, has had a significant impact on the climate for animal researchers by strengthening actions that could be taken against extremists.The pharmaceutical industry has already noticed a change. In July, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) reported that attacks on people's private homes have dropped by half since the same period last year, and 14% of the total for the first six months of 2004. Perhaps most significantly, though, the number of people speaking out in support of animal research has risen noticeably. In January, for example, 16-year-old schoolboy Laurie Pycroft started a group in defense of animal research, Pro-Test, gaining widespread support.Since April, more than 21,000 people, including Prime Minister Tony Blair, have also signed a petition register their support for the regulated use of animals in medical research. "I think there's a combination of greater confidence, outrage, and strength in numbers of people that are willing to speak out," said Petit-Zeman.For scientists, these factors are generating a feeling of increased confidence, said Barbara Davies, spokeswoman for RDS. "This is the feeling we get ? it's something that we're hearing from scientists," she told The Scientist.John Martin, professor of cardiovascular science at University College London, and a long-time public advocate of the value of animal research, said he has felt the change. "There's been a very negative atmosphere for the past 10 years, but that has changed in the past 18 months," he said.The increased numbers of other scientists speaking out has been a welcome change, he told The Scientist. "It used to be very lonely, but now it's much less lonely as I've been joined by a lot of other scientists."Petit-Zeman added that medical charities are also responding to the more positive climate. "Charities seem to be increasingly considering being more open about the subject," she said. At least 20 charities already have statements supporting animal research on their Web sites, and in the past month several more have spoken to AMRC about possibly drafting their own statement. All the association's 111 member charities also endorse its statement affirming the value of animal research.Not surprisingly, the animal rights movement may see the situation differently. On Sunday (August 21), activist Mel Broughton, of the group Speak, told a crowd of 150 protesting against a research breeding firm in the city of Hull that campaigners had the industry and politicians on the defensive. "The Government is running scared on this because we are winning the argument and we have huge public support," he was quoted saying in the Yorkshire Post newspaper.Stephen Pincock spincock@the-scientist.comLinks within this articleS. Pincock, "UK crackdown on activists," The Scientist, July 30, 2004. http://www.the-scientist.com/article/display/22318/P. Johnston, "Public turns on animal terrorists," Telegraph.co.uk, May 29, 2006. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=JF00NPTWJO5R5QFIQMFCFFWAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2006/05/29/nanim29.xmlABPI, "Sea change in level of attacks by animal extremists," July 26, 2006. http://www.abpi.org.uk/press/press_releases_06/060726.aspPro-Test http://www.pro-test.org.uk/S. Pincock, "Petition backs animal research," The Scientist, April 21, 2006. http://www.the-scientist.com/blog/display/23339/John Martin http://www.ucl.ac.uk/medicine/cardiovascular-biology/staff/jm.htmlAMRC Statement on the Use of Animals in Medical Research http://www.amrc.org.uk/temp/Statementsp-spUsespofspAnimalsspFinalspMaysp2006.docSpeak http://www.speakcampaigns.org.uk/S. Bristow, "Animal rights activists in city protest," Yorkshire Post, August 21, 2006. http://www.yorkshiretoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=1084&ArticleID=1709380

Research winning war with extremists, says group

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