Great apes

Monkeying around

There’s been a fair share of monkey business in the EU this week.

No, I’m not talking about the shenanigans around the bailout of Greece and steps to shore up the euro, I’m talking about chimps.

Great apes have feelings too, the EU said yesterday, as anybody who ever watched those funny chimps enjoying a great cup of PG Tips can testify.

The EU is deepening its involvement in controls on animal experimentation. Europe now says that “experiments with great apes, such as chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans will be prohibited.”

But there is a get-out. Experiments will be allowed if there are “justifiable reasons for believing that it is essential for the survival of the species itself or because of an unexpected outbreak of a life-threatening or debilitating disease in human beings.”

So if you start seeing monkeys being experimented upon, you know we’re in trouble.