It’s Time to Phase Out Cruel and Outdated Animal Experiments

Millions of animals are still used in British laboratories every year. Many never leave, and over 92% of drugs that succeed in animal tests never work in humans. This is an unreliable, cruel, and outdated approach.

That is why I support the Animal Free Research UK campaign and Herbie’s Law: a plan to phase out animal experiments in UK medical research by 2035 and replace them with compassionate, reliable alternatives.

Named after Herbie, a beagle rescued from a life in laboratory experimentation, whose story has helped expose the reality faced by so many animals bred for testing. His rescue shows that a different future is possible, where animals are no longer treated as test subjects.

Herbie’s law will not stop animal testing overnight. Instead, it will kickstart a staggered transition that gives scientists the time to progress to more innovative, human-specific practices – ending decades of suffering and harm to over 2.6 million animals in 2024. 

As Liberal Democrats, we have long championed high animal welfare standards, including improved standards of animal welfare in agriculture, ensuring the protection of funding for the National Wildlife Crime Unit, and ending the practice of housing chickens in battery cages.

This is an issue that cuts across party lines. YouGov polling in January 2025 found that 7 in 10 people in Britain support a new law to end animal experiments in medical research by 2035.

This is personal for so many, not just because millions of us share our lives with our beloved pets, but because we increasingly expect modern science to align with our shared values.

I will continue to support measures that accelerate the shift to non-animal research and ensure effective, humane methods sit at the centre of UK science.