Congratulations to Dr Vicky Robinson, Chief Executive of the NC3Rs, for the carefully worded response to the announcement that the Animal Liberation Front released 129 rabbits from a breeding facility in Lincolnshire.

The NC3Rs statement expressed great concern about the release of these animals. It pointed out:

These are captive bred animals which are not prepared to cope with life in the wild or as a pet. Putting them in this situation is not in their best interests and is likely to be stressful for them, regardless of ones view on the rights and wrongs of using animals in research.

Dr Robinson acknowledged that ’many people are concerned about using animals in research ‘. And as a person who feels passionate about animal welfare, she added that she ’does not like to see rabbits being kept in these conditions‘.

But as she pointed out ’the way forward to end animal use is to find scientific and technological alternatives. Unfortunately, the activities of the animal rights extremists divert attention and resources away from this goal‘.

The NC3Rs has had yet another successful year, culminating in the award of the 3Rs Prize for 2007 announced yesterday. This was for work which harnessed the latest DNA technology to develop a better way to study the parasites that cause bilharzia, a serious disease affecting the developing world. The new technique allows the use of animals in the research project to be replaced at the same time. A positive result on all fronts!