Category: News;
Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ
THREE
Date: 10.05.2004
Printable version
Research undertaken for Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ THREE's 7 O'Clock
News has found that 25 to 34 year olds think, by two to one,
that the Government should be doing more to protect medical researchers
who experiment on animals.
The ICM survey for Monday night's programme (10 May
2004) found 55 per cent of those asked said the Government should do
more to protect people carrying out animal research from protest or
intimidation. 26 per cent disagreed.
The survey found that this age group was evenly split
on the idea of experimenting on animals for the purpose of medical research,
with 44% supporting it and 43% opposed.
However, young adults clearly reject illegal protests
against experimenting on animals. 73 per cent disagreed with the statement
that protests against experiments on animals are justified, even if
they involve breaking the law.
The subject of animal testing highlighted a very clear
difference between men and women, with men much more in favour of experimenting
on animals for medical research.
54% of men were in favour, 34% against, while 35% of
women were in favour and 50% were against.
Speaking on the 7 O'Clock News on Monday 10 May Colin
Blakemore, Chief Executive of the Medical Research Council, agrees that
more should be done to protect people who work in animal research.
He tells the programme: "What we see at the present
moment is that the lives of researchers... are really being made hell
by what is frankly terrorism.
"There is no other way of describing it, where
you inflict terror and threats on individuals and their families and
their neighbours...
"We know that the number of people involved is
very, very small in using those kind of tactics. And after September
11, I think the public in general is rather unhappy with the idea of
people using force and threats and intimidation to pursue a minority
opinion."
Dr Mark Matfield, of Victims of Animal Rights Extremism
(VARE), tells the 7 O'Clock News: "Clearly the existing law is
not tough enough so we want to see the Government bring in specific
legislation, an Animal Rights Extremism Act, like the specific legislation
we've got for football hooliganism or international terrorism. It's
time for tough laws to stamp this problem out."
Greg Avery, from the campaign group Stop Huntingdon
Animal Cruelty, tells the programme the group doesn't intimidate people
and only carries out legitimate, peaceful protest.
He says the calls for more protection for those involved
in animal research threaten their right to protest: "What these
companies basically want... is to stop all protests against anything,
be that against GM crops, be that against animal testing. There is no
stopping these companies."
Monday night's 7 O'Clock News examines the pressure
on the Government to take tougher action against animal rights extremists.
The number of attacks against companies involved in
animal research is on the increase and recently the pharmaceutical industry
formed campaign group VARE to call for specific legislation to tackle
the problem.
This comes as the Government is expected to announce
plans to open a centre to develop alternatives to animal testing.
The programme has had access to the laboratories at
Huntingdon Life Sciences and has covered protests held by the animal
rights groups SHAC and Speak.
Notes to Editors
ICM research interviewed a random selection of 636
adults aged 25 to 34 by telephone between 14 and 25 April 2004.
Interviews were conducted across the country and the
results have been weighted to the profile of all adults.
