All Wales Euro MP Jill Evans has welcomed today’s vote in the European Parliament for a complete EU-wide sales ban on new cosmetics tested on animals.

Ms Evans, who is a member of the European Parliament’s Committee on Consumer Policy, addressed Parliament during the debate making a passionate plea for the support of her fellow members to ban the cruel testing on animals. She said,

"It is time for us to take action to ensure that the concerns of our citizens and those who care about animal welfare are properly addressed by introducing a complete ban on sales of new cosmetics tested on animals and a testing ban."

"There can be no justification for making animals suffer in these tests when there are proven effective and safe alternative testing methods and 8,000 cosmetics ingredients already in use. We are talking about cosmetics such as shampoo and anti-wrinkle creams and not medical products."

"Consumers must have the right to choose whether the products they buy have been animal tested; good labelling is essential to ensure this. Indeed, we would like to have seen the report further strengthened by the adoption of a ban on the use of allergic fragrances."

Back in 1993 the European Union agreed to ban the sale of cosmetics tested on animals after 1998. However EU governments in the Council of Ministers decided that this date should be postponed until alternative non-animal test methods were available. Eight years later, the ban has still not been implemented, even though alternative methods have now been developed.

Responding to the Parliament’s decision Ms Evans said,

"Although there is a voluntary ban on animal testing for cosmetics in the UK, in Europe alone around 38,000 animals are still suffering in experiments every year to develop and test new cosmetic ingredients and products. I hope this decision will now lead to these terrible practices being eliminated."

DIWEDD/END.