Opinion from FENS to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Amendment (Prohibition of Live Imports of Primates for Research) Bill 2015

04 February 2016

FENS News

04 February, 2016 in FENS News

On 4 February the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS), represented by its president Professor Monica Di Luca sent an opinion to the Australian Senate Committee for Environment and Communication which is considering a proposal to ban import of lab-bred, non-human primates.

The committee held a public hearing on 5 February to discuss the ban, proposed in an amendment to the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Bill by Senator Rhiannon.

Professor Di Luca expressed her concern about the proposal, stressing the importance of animal research, including research with non-human primates, which continues to be the basis for medical advances that have extended our life expectancy and raised our chances of overcoming or ameliorating life-threatening and debilitating diseases.

FENS believes that the proposed ban on the importation of lab-bred, non-human primates could be very damaging to Australian science, and therefore urged that this proposed ban not be enacted into Australian law.

FENS encourages the public, the media and politicians to develop an informed opinion on how best to advance both, animal welfare and biomedical progress.

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Click here to access the full letter from FENS.