Non-human primates are only used in scientific research where absolutely necessary. Non-human primates play an important role in the public safety testing of novel pharmaceuticals prior to human trials, fulfilling international guidelines and national regulatory requirements. All imports of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) into the UK are controlled by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), by way of their listing on CITES Appendix II. To meet our obligations under CITES, all applications for import are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and only allowed for scientific research purposes where we are confident the imports will not have a harmful effect on conservation status of the species. The UK Government has no plans under CITES to end the import of long-tailed macaques for scientific research where they are the most appropriate and scientifically justified species.

Between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2020, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) recorded 1142 live long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) as being imported into the UK from Mauritius. All were captive-bred (Source C) and were imported using purpose code M (bio-medical research).

APHA did not issue any import permits for wild (source W) or first-generation captive bred (source F) specimens in 2020.

A further 122 captive-bred live macaques were imported in early 2021 using Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species permits issued in 2020.