The Guinea Pig and the Law

Experiments "calculated to inflict pain" is how the law describes scientific experiments on laboratory animals. But the law is now 100 years old and the Home Office is under pressure to change the way it is applied. The number of experiments has increased from 270 to 51 million each year. Almost all are for the benefit of the public -- either to relieve human disease or ensure the safety of drugs or other products. Yet many scientists believe that if the public were better informed they might accept a different balance between animal welfare and human safety.

How are animal experiments carried out in Britain and what would be at risk if they were controlled more strictly?

Narrator: PAUL VAUGHAN
Film cameraman: KENNETH LOWE
Film editor: MICHAEL RIGG
Editor: SIMON CAMPBELL-JONES
Written and produced by STUART HARRIS