Publication date: 06/05/15
ThemesNews
On 11 May, the European Parliament is holding a public hearing on the European Citizens´ Initiative (ECI) “Stop Vivisection”. In view of this upcoming hearing, and the decision from the European Commission at the beginning of June, the League of European Research Universities (LERU) strongly reiterates its opposition to the ECI.
The European Citizens´ Initiative “Stop Vivisection” was submitted to the European Commission in March 2015. It aims to get rid of the European Directive on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes (Directive 2010/63/EU) and to ban all research using animals.
If that were to happen, current research using animals for the understanding and treatment of human diseases such as cancer, heart failure or Alzheimer´s would be banned. Not only human, but also veterinary medicine would be seriously hampered, as medicines and vaccines for pets and livestock are often developed from those for humans. Moreover, it is important to note that the European Directive on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes holds research with animals to the highest ethical standards.
LERU -together with more than 140 leading biomedical research organisations, learned societies, industry representatives, universities and patient groups in Europe- has signed up to the Wellcome Trust´s joint statement supporting European Directive 2010/63/EU and calling on the European Parliament to oppose the "Stop Vivisection" ECI.
- Read the press release
