But it does not take a lot for the government to lose its political nerve. Watching the consequences of the current debate New Labour is now trying to limit the damage done to animal research, and is even presenting itself as the saviour of HLS by encouraging private funding - a bit rich considering it gave ground in this debate in the first place. Not that government capitulation to public pressure generated by antivivisection campaigns is anything particularly new. In recent decades British governments have introduced some of the most stringent controls in the world to safeguard laboratory animal welfare. Researchers who propose animal experiments have to jump through regulatory hoops and hurdles - including getting a licence from the Home Office.
Every experiment has to undergo ethical assessment.
The current government is particularly spineless in the face of public criticism - more concerned to cover its own back than to front a defence of scientific research. Whether it be GM food, stem-cell research or animal experimentation, the government would rather set up committees, commission reports and procrastinate than take a lead and make a decision. The end result is that a tiny minority is allowed to lay claim to public opinion. This is something that Professor Blakemore finds particularly disturbing. As he told me, 'because no one will talk out on these issues it is the voice of the animal rights extremists that ends up representing the grassroots view.