Resources

Legislation, codes, and policy

Legislation to protect animal welfare comes under the auspices of State authorities. Although there are some differences between States in specific legislative requirements, in each case the Australian code for the care and use of animals for scientific purposes 8th edition (2013) ("the Code") is the basis for describing practices and procedures to protect the welfare of animals used for scientific purposes.

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) centrally coordinates the development of codes of practice and other policy material relating to animal welfare issues.

Victorian legislation and codes

Victorian Acts and Regulations relevant to animal welfare, including the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act (and Regulations), the National Parks Act, the Wildlife Act and the Fisheries Act, may be found on the Victorian Law Today website.

The Agriculture Victoria, Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources (DEDJTR) website contains a comprehensive list of Victorian Codes of Practice for Animal Welfare. As well as complying with the Code, researchers and teaching staff must uphold the minimum standards in the Code of Practice for the Housing and Care of Laboratory Mice, Rats, Guinea Pigs and Rabbits, and the Code of Practice for the Use of Animals from Municipal Pounds in Scientific Procedures.

University policy and guidelines

The University of Melbourne's Research Integrity and Misconduct Policy prescribes standards of responsible and ethical conduct expected of all persons (academic staff, students, technical and other support staff) engaged in research.

The University's Animal Ethics Committee Terms of Reference outline: (i) the scope of its responsibilities for ethical review, approval and monitoring of animal care and use; (ii) its institutional accountability; (iii) its mechanisms of reporting; and (iv) the way in which it meets the requirements for categories of minimum membership.