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Protest over beagle breeding plans
A DOZEN animal rights campaigners are due to stage a protest in a Holderness village tomorrow which is earmarked for a controversial expansion in breeding facilties for beagles.
American-owned B & K Universal launched an appeal after being refused planning permission in June to redevelop its facilities in Grimston, making it the largest beagle breeding farm in the UK.
However the final decision has now been taken out of the hands of the Planning Inspectorate and will be made by Communities Secretary Eric Pickles. A Planning Inspector is due to conduct an official visit tomorrow.
An online petition against the expansion attracted 28,000 signatures.
Those in favour argue that dogs, which represent less than 0.1 of a per cent of all animals used in research, are needed for heart research and safety testing in new medicines.
Local residents have already said they fear a repeat of the demonstrations and police presence they’ve endured intermittently over the years.
Victoria Martindale, spokeswoman for the group, said they would be dressing in boiler suits and wearing beagle masks to get their point across, and would line the road in Grimston with placards when the inspector arrives around 11.30am.
She said: “There is just no need for any kind of expansion like this anywhere in the UK.
“Not only has the UK government made a pledge to reduce the number of animals used in medical research but there are better and safer alternatives to dogs available today.”
The latest Home Office figures on beagles used in research show that in 2010, 5,695 experiments were carried out on 3,704 beagles.
Pro-testing organisations like Understanding Animal Research cite the discovery of insulin in dogs in the 1920s by Banting and Best as a “good example” of the contribution animal research makes to medical progress.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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