AVA Submission on the Use of primates and other animals in medical research in NSW

01 Apr 2022

The AVA submission to the NSW Parliamentary Inquiry into the use of primates and other animals in medical research.

Key recommendations:

  1. The AVA supports and encourages a continuing commitment to animal research in NSW and the important role that it plays in the knowledge and improvement of health and wellbeing for humans, animals and/or the environment.
  2. The AVA recommends a greater emphasis be placed on the provision of research grants to address the 3Rs (reduction, replacement and refinement) and alternatives to animals in research.
  3. The AVA recommends the NSW Government includes veterinarians in all aspects of animal research to enhance application of the 3Rs, foster animal welfare and maximise quality of research through their:
    1. commitment to and knowledge of biological, behavioural and psychological needs of animals;
    2. specific knowledge and skills in animal research procedures including scientific design,
      confirmation of animal models, clinical health assessment, surgical interventions,
      anaesthesia, analgesia and diagnostic pathology; and
    3. understanding of the impact of the human--animal relationship as it contributes to the five
      domains model of animal welfare
  4. The AVA recommends the formal inclusion of an appropriately qualified veterinarian on the Animal Research Review Panel (ARRP) by the addition of a nominee of the Australian Veterinary Association in the list of members.
  5. The AVA recommends that a higher competency training be introduced involving online courses and ongoing training of researchers be a key responsibility of the institutional veterinarians. The institutional or facility veterinarians must have a hands-on role in directly assessing and approving the competence of researchers to undertake procedures on animals, and provide ongoing oversight and monitoring of the animals in their care. Importantly, the number of veterinarians employed by the facility to perform
    this role must be proportionate to the number of animals and commensurate with the risks, so that the program of veterinary care is appropriate and not merely nominal.
  6. The AVA recommends a better harmonisation and standardisation of the animal research legislation across Australian jurisdictions to avoid the interpretative differences seen in legislation between the states and territories.
  7. The AVA would support a move towards uniform commonwealth legislation aligned to the Australian Code for the care and use of animals for scientific purposes (2013) (The Code) to regulate animal research which is commonly undertaken collaboratively across many jurisdictions. This would bring Australia into line with the best practice international regulation observed in the UK and EU.
  8. The AVA supports and recommends harmonisation and standardisation of annual animal use
    statistics across state and territories in Australia.

Read the full submission