In 2019, Animal Aid raised concerns through its work about animals used for warfare experiments. These experiments may involve nerve agents, chemical or biological materials, or simulated blasts, and can involve the use of live animals.
What is Porton Down?
Porton Down is a UK government facility involved in research related to chemical and biological defence. Its work includes the development of medical countermeasures and the testing of protective systems designed to respond to chemical and biological threats. As part of this work, small quantities of chemical and biological agents are produced under controlled conditions.
The facility uses animals in certain areas of its research, including studies intended to evaluate protective measures and medical treatments.
Chemical and biological agents can take a range of forms, including nerve agents and toxic gases. In some research contexts, animals may be exposed to such substances in order to study their effects and to assess potential treatments or protective interventions.
Nerve agents are highly toxic substances that work by binding to an enzyme in the body, stopping that enzyme from working and causing mental impairment, breathing problems, seizures, coma and death.
Porton Down was founded just over a century ago, in 1916. As the oldest chemical warfare research establishment in the world.
Just 3 years after Animal Aid was founded, our supporter magazine, Outrage, shared details of a march in Salisbury in 1980 to raise awareness of what was taking place just down the road, at Porton Down. Several thousand people attended, including our very own founder, Jean Pink. When the director of Porton Down would not accept Jean’s wreath of remembrance, for all the animals who had suffered and died there, the wreaths were laid on the ground.
A later issue of Outrage detailed one particular warfare experiment that happened at Porton Down: exposing monkeys to a nerve gas known as soman. We reported that the monkeys were then given further drugs to try to counteract the effects of the nerve gas.
Take action for animals in laboratories
There is no justification for harming and exploiting animals when cruelty-free science is possible. Ask your MP to strengthen the Government’s animal testing strategy.