andMr. B. Desmond asked the Minister for Health if, in view of the information given in his written reply to a Parliamentary Question on 19 November 1980, he will consider increasing the grant to the Medical Research Council to enable it to promote research into alternative techniques to the use of live animals in medical research.

As pointed out in my reply on 19 November 1980 to a question by Deputy Cogan, Official Report, Volume 324, column 756, the Medical Research Council has reported that the cost of research into alternative techniques to the use of live animals would be prohibitive. In the light of this opinion I do not think that an increase in the grant for this purpose would be warranted.