Demanding Action Against Animal Experimentation

Using animals for science does not start in a lab. It is driven by a complicated web of factors. Funding and policy decisions are a major driver of animal experimentation. A lack of transparency and openness means the public rarely knows what is going on. And our laws are often weak and selectively enforced. To tackle these problems, we are going to the very source of the use of animals in science!

This petition aims to put the pressure on Parliament to start creating a world without animal testing. NZAVS has been campaigning on this topic for decades, so we will also be sharing our expertise for how to make it happen.

What this petition is demanding:

Better allocation of funding
• Funding for retraining scientists to use non-animal-based and human-relevant methods.
• Funding for infrastructure for non-animal-based and human-relevant methods.
• Prioritisation of funding for research using non-animal-based and human-relevant methods.
• Prioritisation of funding for research to create non-animal-based and human-relevant methods.
• Funding for universities to develop courses on non-animal-based and human-relevant methods.
• Deprioritisation of funding for animal-based research.

Greater openness and transparency
• Mandatory filming of experiments involving animals.
• A registration programme for those providing animals for research.
• Birth to end-of-research tracing and transparency, so it is clear for any given experiment where the animals came from and where they went after the research.
• Greater transparency for existing documents, requiring their publication.
• Publish all findings using animals to avoid unnecessary repetition.
• Ensure private research conducted on animals is made public, to avoid unnecessary repetition.
• Research conducted overseas for New Zealand companies should be subject to the same standards of openness and transparency.

Stronger laws
• Government bodies commit to phasing out the use of animals in science as technology permits.
• Phase-out all requirements for animal testing in New Zealand law.
• Legislation amended to require that non-animal-based RTT methods be used over animal-based methods (alive or dead), where they exist.
• An independent body for animal welfare, such as a Crown entity or commission.
• A Minister for Animals separate from the Minister for Agriculture.
• A comprehensive review of the efficacy of the animal model and the potential viability of non-animal-based methods as replacements.
• Involvement of the public and advocacy groups like NZAVS in decision-making.
• A requirement for all Animal Ethics Committees to have an expert on non-animal-based methods.
• A requirement for all Animal Ethics Committees to make applications public.
• A requirement for all Animal Ethics Committees to check for non-animal-based methods that may be able to replace animals when considering an application.
• The establishment and maintenance of a database of non-animal-based methods, to aid Animal Ethics Committees.
• The restructure of Animal Ethics Committees to minimise conflicts of interest. Scientists involved should not have a financial interest in animal-based-research – whether via employment or ownership of a company.
• Sufficient funding for enforcement to ensure these objectives are met.

We believe that fulfilling these requirements will result in a new, refreshed system that will encourage scientific progress without causing harm to animals. This new system will help pave the way for a kinder and fairer Aotearoa where humans and non-human animals suffer less. Once successful, we’ll be closer to a world where human health and medical research thrives and where animals are seen as individual beings with their own right to life.

You can read more about the campaign here http://nzavs.org.nz/striking-at-the-source

You can learn more about how animals are used in science in NZ here: https://nzavs.org.nz/animals-in-science-nz