The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (A(SP)A 86) is a law passed by the UK parliament in 1986, which regulates the use of laboratory animals in the U.K. Fundamentally, actions that have the potential of causing pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm to animals are illegal in the U.K. under separate laws which forbid cruelty to animals. ASPA permits certain scientific procedures, including vivisection, but only if very stringent criteria are met, and if procedures are carried out in a manner that eliminates or minimizes pain, distress or lasting harm to the animals.

A(SP)A 86 is characterised by three levels of regulation - person, project, and place. The 'person' level is achieved by the granting of a Personal Licence (PIL) to a researcher wishing to carry out regulated procedures on a protected animal. Having undergone a defined sequence of training, a researcher can apply for and be granted a PIL permitting specified techniques to be carried out in named species of animals. The 'project' level of regulation is governed by the granting of a Project Licence (PPL) to a suitably qualified senior researcher. The PPL will detail the scope of the work to be carried out, the likely benefits that may be realised by the work, and the costs involved in terms of the numbers and types of animals to be used. Typically a large and detailed document, the PPL precisely defines which techniques may be applied to particular animals and for what purpose. Finally the place where regulated procedures are carried out is controlled by the granting of a Certificate of Designation (PCD), which will list which rooms in the establishment are permitted to be used for certain techniques and species.

External Links

• British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection - A critique of the Act.

Animal welfare | United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1986