Committee publication · Correspondence · 18 November 2025
Correspondence from Lord Vallance, Minister of State for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, regarding an announcement on replacing animals in science, dated 11 November 2025
From: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee
Inquiry: Animal and plant health
Summary
Lord Vallance, Minister of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, writes to inform Parliament of a government strategy on replacing animals in science. The strategy commits to phasing out animal testing through development and validation of alternatives like AI, organoids, and 3D cell systems, backed by £60m funding for a preclinical translational models hub and UK Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods.
Key findings
- Government strategy aims to position UK as global leader in developing alternatives to animal testing, eliminating animal use except in exceptional circumstances.
- New technologies (AI, genomics, organoids, 3D cell systems) now offer credible alternatives that can replicate biological systems more accurately than animal models.
- £60m funding allocated to establish preclinical translational models hub and UK Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods (UKCVAM) to accelerate regulatory validation.
- Strategy commits to accelerating phasing out of animal testing, partnering with industry to increase private sector investment, and improving regulatory acceptance of alternatives.
- Government engaged extensively with scientists, industry, and animal welfare groups across government departments to develop the strategy over five years.
Tone
SupportiveTopics
Key actors
Lord Vallance, Alistair Carmichael MP, Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, UK Centre for the Validation of Alternative Methods, Parliament
Notable line
“Our vision is for a world where the use of animals in research and development is eliminated in all but exceptional circumstances …”
Key Quotes
“Advances in technology (such as AI, genomics, organoids, and 3D cell systems) now offer credible alternatives that in some cases can replicate biological systems more accurately than before.”
“This strategy lays out the steps we, the Government, will take over the next five years towards achieving this vision across the whole of the UK.”
“By working in tandem with partners, pledging new funding for researchers and streamlining regulation, the plan will enable teams to pivot safely but more quickly to methods like testing on cells …”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗