Cambridge University has abandoned plans to build a new laboratory which would have conducted experiments on monkeys. Mark Henderson, left, Science Correspondent, reports on the battle between scientists and activists.

Why has lab been abandoned?

It is all a matter of cost. Cambridge University has taken five years to secure planning permission, because of the objections of animal rights groups. During this period, the costs have risen from £24 million to £32 million, owing to inflation, security demands and new animal welfare regulations.

The added costs of protecting staff against animal rights terrorists, and policing demonstrations, could also run to more than £1 million a year. Extremists have previously targeted contractors and insurers, and might be expected to do so again, making the project even more costly to complete. Cambridge also has a large financial deficit, and decided it could no longer afford to press ahead.

Who are the winners and losers of this decision?

The animal rights lobby is claiming a victory, and it is true that they have prevented this centre from being built. They have not, however, won the argument. Scientists remain convinced that animal experiments are necessary, and a recent MORI poll for the Coalition for Medical Progress found that 90 per cent of the public agrees.

In the longer term, however, the activists may lose out, as this decision will increase pressure for new legislation to clamp down on violent protests and on harassment of scientists, support staff and contractors.

Another group of potential winners are foreign universities, particularly in the US. Much of the research earmarked for Cambridge may now go to these centres, and they may also be able to poach top British experts.

The clearest loser is Cambridge University, but the whole scientific community feels slighted -- particularly in the light of the recent honours row in which Professor Colin Blakemore, chief executive of the Medical Research Council, was denied a knighthood in view of his "controversial" work on vivisection.

What will happen now?

The Huntingdon Road centre will not now be built, but the MRC and the Wellcome Trust remain committed to funding the research that would have been done there. They are likely to change tack and support smaller scale facilities, possibly attached to existing labs. However, another option, to build the centre on a secure site such as the Ministry of Defence research laboratory at Porton Down in Wiltshire, is no longer under consideration.

What would the laboratory have been for?

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