❓ A WA parliamentary question seeks detailed data on animal testing for scientific research, but the Minister's response indicates that the data is not centrally collated due to resource constraints and lack of legal requirement. The response provides general information about the types of tests, access to a public register of licensees, and the broad definition of 'scientific purposes'.
AnsweredQoN 4005Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
In relation to animal testing conducted for the purposes of scientific research in Western Australia and statistics kept by the Department of Agriculture and Food, I ask the Minister:
(a) how many individual animals, and of what species, had scientific tests conducted upon them in Western Australia in 2008, 2009 and to date in 2010;
(b) what were the types of scientific tests which were conducted on each species of animal;
(c) which organisations have carried out scientific research tests; and
(d) what was the scientific purpose of these tests?
(a) how many individual animals, and of what species, had scientific tests conducted upon them in Western Australia in 2008, 2009 and to date in 2010;
(b) what were the types of scientific tests which were conducted on each species of animal;
(c) which organisations have carried out scientific research tests; and
(d) what was the scientific purpose of these tests?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
21 October 2010
Responded by
Minister for Local Government
Response time
29 days
The Department of Local Government administers the
Animal Welfare Act 2002
and keeps animal use data for all licensed scientific establishments in Western Australia.
(a) The animal use data is obtained from all licensed scientific establishments on an annual basis, at the time of licence renewal in June, by the Department of Local Government. This data has not been collated into figures for the State. There is no legal requirement to do so and collation provides limited benefit and is resource intensive. It is, therefore, not possible to say how many individual animals, and of what species, had scientific tests conducted upon them in Western Australiain 2008, 2009 and to date in 2010.
(b) 'Scientific tests' is a very broad term and includes observation-only studies; observation and minimal engagement studies; basic animal handling; dissections on dead animals; surgical studies under general anaesthesia that involve recovery; surgical studies under general anaesthesia that do not involve recovery; toxicological studies under general anaesthesia that involve recovery, and toxicological studies under general anaesthesia that do not involve recovery.
(c) For the reasons already provided, I am unable to provide a detailed response to this question, however, the Department of Local Government keeps a public register of scientific use/supply licences, as required under the Act, for the current licensing period. Under section 18 (3), 'A person may, at any time during office hours - (a) inspect the register free of charge; and (b) purchase a copy of, or an extract from, the register.' Copies, or extracts, are sold at a price that does not exceed the cost of providing them, as required under the Act.
(d) Under the Act,the term 'scientific purposes' 'means acquiring, developing or demonstrating knowledge or techniques in a scientific discipline, other than in prescribed circumstances, and includes - (a) teaching; (b) research; (c) product development or testing; and (d) carrying out a prescribed activity.' There are currently no prescribed activities. The scientific purposes of the tests vary considerably and include medical; 'academic'; agricultural and veterinary research; field trials and teaching. For example raising chickens in primary schools gives children an opportunity to observe animal husbandry; observing whale movement allows understanding of migratory patterns; trialling anti-parasite drugs helps combat the incidence of parasitism in cattle, and the use of laboratory animals for medical research allows scientists to develop treatments for many life threatening diseases and injuries in humans and animals.
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
Animal Welfare Act 2002
and keeps animal use data for all licensed scientific establishments in Western Australia.
(a) The animal use data is obtained from all licensed scientific establishments on an annual basis, at the time of licence renewal in June, by the Department of Local Government. This data has not been collated into figures for the State. There is no legal requirement to do so and collation provides limited benefit and is resource intensive. It is, therefore, not possible to say how many individual animals, and of what species, had scientific tests conducted upon them in Western Australiain 2008, 2009 and to date in 2010.
(b) 'Scientific tests' is a very broad term and includes observation-only studies; observation and minimal engagement studies; basic animal handling; dissections on dead animals; surgical studies under general anaesthesia that involve recovery; surgical studies under general anaesthesia that do not involve recovery; toxicological studies under general anaesthesia that involve recovery, and toxicological studies under general anaesthesia that do not involve recovery.
(c) For the reasons already provided, I am unable to provide a detailed response to this question, however, the Department of Local Government keeps a public register of scientific use/supply licences, as required under the Act, for the current licensing period. Under section 18 (3), 'A person may, at any time during office hours - (a) inspect the register free of charge; and (b) purchase a copy of, or an extract from, the register.' Copies, or extracts, are sold at a price that does not exceed the cost of providing them, as required under the Act.
(d) Under the Act,the term 'scientific purposes' 'means acquiring, developing or demonstrating knowledge or techniques in a scientific discipline, other than in prescribed circumstances, and includes - (a) teaching; (b) research; (c) product development or testing; and (d) carrying out a prescribed activity.' There are currently no prescribed activities. The scientific purposes of the tests vary considerably and include medical; 'academic'; agricultural and veterinary research; field trials and teaching. For example raising chickens in primary schools gives children an opportunity to observe animal husbandry; observing whale movement allows understanding of migratory patterns; trialling anti-parasite drugs helps combat the incidence of parasitism in cattle, and the use of laboratory animals for medical research allows scientists to develop treatments for many life threatening diseases and injuries in humans and animals.
Notice: This document is created or edited using unregistered or evaluation copy of rtLib valid for testing or development purposes only. To use it for productive or any other purposes please register it. You may purchase the license on
http://www.rtlib.com
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.