S.L. 439.20 Art. 1Citation, subject matter and scope.

(1) The title of these regulations is the Protection of Animals Used for Scientific Purposes Regulations.

(2) The scope of these regulations is to transpose Directive 2010/63/EU on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes.

(3) These regulations establish measures for the protection of animals used for scientific or educational purposes and establish the following rules:

(a) the replacement and reduction of the use of animals in procedures and the refinement of the breeding, accommodation, care and use of animals in procedures;

(b) the origin, breeding, marking, care and accommodation and killing of animals;

(c) the operations of breeders, suppliers and users;

(d) the evaluation and authorisation of projects involving the use of animals in procedures.

(4) (a) These regulations shall apply where animals are used or intended to be used in procedures, or bred specifically so that their organs or tissues may be used for scientific purposes.

(b) These regulations shall apply until the animals referred to in the first sub-regulation have been killed, rehomed or returned to a suitable habitat or husbandry system.

(c) The elimination of pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm by the successful use of anaesthesia, analgesia or other methods shall not exclude the use of an animal in procedures from the scope of these regulations.

(5) These regulations shall apply to the following animals:

(a) live non-human vertebrate animals, including:

(i) independently feeding larval forms; and

(ii) foetal forms of mammals as from the last third of their normal development; USED FOR SCIENTIFIC PURPOSES

(b) live cephalopods.

(6) These regulations shall apply to animals used in procedures, which are at an earlier stage of development than that referred to in paragraph (a) of sub-regulation 5, if the animal is to be allowed to live beyond that stage of development and, as a result of the procedures performed, is likely to experience pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm after it has reached that stage of development.

(7) These regulations shall not apply to the following:

(a) non-experimental agricultural practices;

(b) non-experimental clinical veterinary practices;

(c) veterinary clinical trials required for the marketing authorisation of a veterinary medicinal product;

(d) practices undertaken for the purposes of recognised animal husbandry;

(e) practices undertaken for the primary purpose of identification of an animal;

(f) practices not likely to cause pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm equivalent to, or higher than, that caused by the introduction of a needle in accordance with good veterinary practice.

(8) These regulations shall apply without prejudice to those regulation relating to cosmetic products.