On 12 February 2026, new regulations came into force which classify the life sciences sector – including animal testing sites – as “key national infrastructure” under the Public Order Act 2023, alongside transport and energy sites. Protestors who “interfere” with such facilities could face severe criminal sanctions, including up to a year in jail, though what constitutes “interference” has not been defined.
Campaigners believe the regulations have alarming implications for animals – signalling a desire to protect the animal testing industry which runs contrary to the government’s recent promise to phase it out – and for protest rights.
The fact that the government advanced the controversial measures through regulations – which receive significantly less Parliamentary scrutiny than primary legislation – has also raised constitutional concerns. In the House of Lords debate, Baroness Miller called them “the clearest abuse of legislative powers that I can remember in my 27 years here” and “an absolute affront to the parliamentary process and a further dangerous move in undermining a right to protest”.
Helen Fry is acting in a proposed judicial review challenge to the regulations by Lawyers for Animals (a legal charity specialising in the protection of animals and those who advocate for them) and Sole Iriart (a campaigner with Camp Beagle, a permanent protest encampment outside MBR Acres, which breeds dogs for use in animal experiments.)