PRIMATE EXPERIMENTS MUST END - LIZ

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 24th Apr 2007

"We are all primates!"

Liz Lynne, Lib Dem MEP for the West Midlands today welcomed an initiative by Animal Defenders International calling for an end to experimentation on primates and called on her fellow MEPs to sign a new written declaration on the barbaric use of non-human primates in scientific experiments across the EU.

The written declaration calls for the revision of EU Directive 86/609 to end the use of apes and wild caught monkeys in scientific experiments as well as establish a timetable for replacing the use of all primates in laboratory research.

Commenting from the launch of the declaration at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Liz said:

"A move away from experiments on primates is an important humane step and I hope The Commission considers this with a revision of the Directive concerning the rules for animal experimentation across the EU."

"Considering that Primates are humankind's closest relatives, sharing up to 98% of the same DNA as us, it is abhorrent that we find it acceptable to subject these poor animals to such testing.

"Although alternative methods of research now exist, almost 10,000 tests on Primates occur every year across the EU - with the UK being one of the worst offenders. I hope a majority of my colleagues will also sign the declaration and help end this awful practice."