Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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I move:

That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to amend the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013 to prohibit animal testing for botox.

I am introducing the Bill for a very simple reason, which I am happy to explain to the Ceann Comhairle and others. This is a Bill to prevent unnecessary cruelty to animals. There is a ban on animal testing for cosmetic purposes across the European Union but despite that, hundreds of animals in this country are still being tested on for cosmetic purposes every single day. That is because of a massive loophole in the law that still allows animals to be tested on for the purpose of botox. Botox can be tested on animals with a view to then being used on humans. It can be tested on animals even when it is produced for cosmetic rather than medical purposes.

Ireland is the world capital of botox production. We are also the European capital, unfortunately, of animal testing for botox. In 2020, 32,000 mice were used to test botox-type products out of a total of 92,939 painful animal experiments performed in Ireland that year. Botox testing, therefore, accounts for more than one in three painful animal experiments in Ireland. I will explain a little about what that testing involves. Each batch of botox is tested using what is known as the LD50 test. That involves injecting a sample of botox, which is the brand name for the nerve poison botulinum toxin A, into the abdomen of mice. It causes the mice to suffer horribly for three or four days. It makes them go blind and paralyses them. It either makes it so hard for them to breathe that they die from suffocation, or it prevents them from reaching food and water so that they die from hunger or thirst. If that sounds barbaric, it is because it is. The worst thing is that all of this suffering is entirely unnecessary.

Humane alternatives to animal testing exist. Modern cell-based tests for botox potency that do not use animals were developed years ago but despite this, animal testing for botox continues to be used. In 2011, the biggest botox producer, Allergan, which manufacturers more than 80% of the world's botox in Westport, County Mayo got regulatory approval for a non-animal test in the US, Canada and the European Union. Other companies, including the German company Merz and the French manufacturer Ipsen, have also received approval in the EU and Switzerland for cell-based tests. They have the money and technology to completely eliminate animal testing for botox and share humane testing technology with all companies working in this area. Allergan alone made €1.5 billion in profits in 2022.

The reason inhumane tests are still being used is some corporations that manufacture botox do not want to pay more for humane testing and others do not want to potentially reduce their profits by sharing their humane testing technology with others. They do not care that their extra profits come at the price of excruciating suffering and death for tens of thousands of animals every year.

One of the founders of the modern environmental movement, Ms Rachel Carson, once said: “Until we have the courage to recognize cruelty for what it is - whether its victim is human or animal - we cannot expect things to be much better in this world." We in People Before Profit agree with that. We think the vast majority of ordinary people do too. The problem is that profit-hungry corporations and the governments that do their bidding across Europe do not. They are the reason animal testing, particularly for cosmetic purposes, still exists. This Bill is a warning shot to them to rapidly replace animal testing with humane alternatives. We should pass this Bill. We should ban animal testing for botox.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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I thank the Deputy very much. Is the Bill being opposed?

Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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It is not opposed.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Since this is a Private Members' Bill, Second Stage must, under Standing Orders, be taken in Private Members' time.

Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, RISE)
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I move: "That the Bill be taken in Private Members' time."