The Government’s Chief Scientific Advisor, Sir David King FRS, said today:

‘Although rare, the use of primates in medical research and testing is invaluable, as an essential aspect of work which provides the best hope for breakthroughs in important areas such as neurodegenerative disorders and for aspects of immune and reproductive functions.’

He was quoted in an MRC press release responding to the Weatherall Report on non-human primate research. He also said the government backed a national strategy for the use of non-human primates in science, as do the public bodies that fund primate research in the UK.

The antivivisection groups campaigning so hard to abolish primate research must be rather depressed today.