I have been reliably informed (as have the majority of people protesting against this) that there are NO plans to store dangerous viruses in this lab. Those who say that there will be are either misinformed or trying to mislead the people of Camden for their own reasons. What this motivation could be is anyone's guess (although I would not be surprised if it was related to animal rights in an effort to build more broad base support from local people).

Try not to lie to people - something this website spends its life accusing the mainstream media of doing...

I noticed that you are using a MySpace page for your campaign, you might be interested in the new Group Feature on London Indymedia. A group site will pull together all you articles, videos and upcoming events published to the site. For example, see the Guantonamo Campaign on London Indymedia:  http://london.indymedia.org.uk/groups/london-guant%C3%A1namo-campaign

Read the Government’s response from the Prime Minister on the No.10 Website
This is a response in advance of the closing date from the Government.

"The UK Centre for Medical Research and Innovation (UKCMRI) offers a unique opportunity to build one of Europe’s premier medical research facilities in partnership between the Medical Research Council (MRC), the Wellcome Trust, Cancer Research UK (CRUK) and University College London (UCL).

The UKCMRI medical research centre will advance scientific understanding, allow the development of treatments for diseases, promote greater opportunities for training clinicians of the future, foster greater interaction and knowledge transfer between basic scientists and clinicians, develop close links with outstanding nearby hospitals and engage the public on health issues.

UKCMRI will play a vital role in the regeneration of the local area, creating jobs and boosting the economy. There will be more that 1,200 scientific jobs and over 100 people employed during the construction phase. There is already ongoing dialogue with the local community and a full community consultation will take place this spring and summer.

The Government is aware that concerns have been raised about possible use of viruses in the new facility. Compliance with biosecurity requirements will be a major consideration for the Consortium developing UKCMRI. The Consortium will be working closely with the relevant agencies, including the Health and Safety Executive, and its plans will be developed so that the facilities meet all regulatory requirements.

There are no plans to carry out research involving cats, dogs or primates at UKCMRI.

The partners will seek any necessary advice on measures relating to personnel and physical security."

CLLR Ben Rawlings is a Camden Councillor, he has made enquiries to the government regarding pathogen emissions and the safety of the public. {Camden New Journal}. Ben Rawlings is not a secret animal rights activist.

CLLR Roger Robinson has written to the Camden New Journal with simialr worries. He is not a secret animal rights activist either.

MP Andrew Dismore wrote in various newspapers "If there was a virus leak from the Mill Hill site that would be nasty enough but if this were to happen in Kings Cross then this would be nastier still". Andrew Dismore is not a secret animal rights activist.

The scientists from the NIMR went to the Camden New Journal and Mill Hill newspapers with concerns about virus leaks.

MI5 contacted the Evening Satndard about virus leak fears some time ago.

The vivisectors and MI5 are not animal rights activists.

The Camden New Journal, London Lite, thelondonpaper, Evening Standard and the Guardian have all written articles with concern about virus leaks.

The lab consortium have NOT ruled out the holding of deadly viruses at the facility, what they have said is that they will investigate security.

The petition I submitted to the government was accepted and is worded to include the MI5 fears. Are you telling me that number 10 were "lying all along" and are also secretly animal rights activitsts?

I dislike animal cruelty and like alot of scientists think that there are better ways to do research. However I also dislike extremism and have made it quite claear to people involved in the campaign that I will not tolerate it around the campaign.

So...for the person who syas "there is no truth in it and that it's all an animal rights recruitment drive" you haven't a clue what you are talking about. In fact I don't even GO to animal rights meetings or demos any more. I also invited a local butcher to our campaign meetings and he certainly isn't an animal rights activist or likely to become one.

On our webpages we've avoided AR stuff as we are focused on local issues as I LIVE here too.

Anyone that actually KNOWS me will know that my priorities have been local....most of the people who've shown horror about the animal testing side of things have mostly BEEN LOCAL...this doesn't mean they are bad people or "animal rights activists".

All this activitity and attacks upon myself shows me that the campaign is reaching the point where the lab consortium are approaching submitting the planning application. Local people are not silly and they will want to see all the security issues thouroughly investaigated around virus leaks etc. I did in fact write to the Army and the BTP and asked them to look into it. This is not the action of an "AR nutter". The quicker this campaign is over and we get some council houses and community facilties on the land the better.
What people don't realise IS that this is a very silly place to put a lab... for so many reasons...

I suggest you do some proper reseacrh instead of writing pointless, baseless propaganda.

There are ALOT of various people worried about this lab...and most of them are NOT "AR" people "misleading" people for "their own reasons".

In fact if you read what was written here....the Camden Lab campaigners and the animal rights people have decided NOT to campaign together...or can't you read?

Have you actaully read the government's response? It DOESN'T say that there are NO plans for deadly viruses BUT that they will have to make sure that security will have to be A grade 1. [or words to that effect...] Why would they need to be so bothered about security therefore and personnel if "there are no plans for deadly viruses"? Have a little think about that....

I have a sneaking suspicion that "anonymously but reliably informed" and "anon" with the gooernemnt's response article are the same person...shame you didn't actually bother to read what you yourself have quoted on here....

Local / London it is ....

 http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/BLISS-Lab

If you simply put the tags camden_lab and animal_liberation, along with any other you want, then it'll makes up a kind of topic page. Like for exampe the tag 'shac' is now on the front page on London IMC  http://london.indymedia.org.uk/

Your website link could look like this  http://london.indymedia.org.uk/search/by_tag/camden_lab

Similar to SHAC London  http://london.indymedia.org.uk/search/by_tag/shac

OK - thanks....{although I should point out that this a community campaign rather than an AR one}. "Respect for Animals" I agree with, but this is not an "Animal Rights" campaign.

We're all in this together.

Although a local campaign may choose to distance itself from animal rights, we should never forget that the 'violent extremists' are those that inflict extreme violence against animals, not those campaigners that are victims of extreme misinformation by the corporate media.

Thankfully Indymedia readers will not be taken in by the lies spread on behalf of the very institutions that are perpetuating animal and human abuse.

We need to stand together against the repression which once 'tested' on one group of campaigners will as sure as night follows day be used against other good people later. I'll not roll out Pastor Martin Niemöller's famous quote yet again, but you can read it at  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_they_came...

Congratulations to Indymedia for resisting the call for a denial of the right to publish animal rights news, and for continuing to publish such topics unhindered (other than trimming out comments that disrupt rather than add anything positive to the debate).

This has to be a mixed issue campaign that is all. This campaign also has to show tolerance and acceptance to people in the campaign who for example might not be a vegetarian and towards the scientists who work for the NIMR who are against the Camden Lab and who are on our side on this one.

I openly and whole heartedly support people from SHAC [who were given a Camden Council permit for the stall] whose actions I do not consider extreme. Heather has said time and again that she has done nothing illegal, I believe her and consider her to be a political prisoner of conscience who has been unfairly treated and possibly set up.
I do not consider direct action, such as rescuing animals to be extreme. I do not consider putting a door in to get animals out of a hellhole is extreme. I do not think that blowing a door off in a controlled manner to rescue animals [or people] is extreme.

What I do not agree with is someone blowing up a car in a private dwelling where pets etc might live in order to get a point across or putting a bomb somewhere where innocent people can be injured ....stuff like that ... I think that genuine animal rights campaigners will agree with me. In fact he tenets of the ALF is that people should not injure any living creature. [Animal Rights people don't do this anyway].

Unfortunately these days the word "terrorist" or "extremist" is being used to describe direct action and / or protest and I feel it is important that people make a distinction here between extremism and direct action.

I believe that the governments illegal invasion of Iraq is extremism / terrorism. I believe that what is happening to the animals in HLS is extremism.

However I do support war if it is necessary in defence of the innocent which is something else entirely.

A broad based local campaign encompassing several issues at once is not an "animal rights" campaign but a community campaign...i.e. it is open for everyone to join. That's why I made the comment.

Several animal rights people are my friends and I would never ever "distance" myself from these people. I think that publishing Heather Nicholson's letter shows this.

Alot of people of Camden who met Heather here also wish Heather and co the best which I will pass on to Heather.

Also I recommend a book called The Enemy Within by Seamus Milne which shows what the UK government are capable of....at the end of the book he says that "these tactics will be used against animal rights activists" and he is right. Thje enemy Within is about the miners strike in "Thatcher's Britain" and how MI5 burgled people, set people up and formed groups of "activists" who were often spying on other groups of "activists" who were Specail Branch. Genuine activists had their phones illegally tapped, homes bugged, "evidence" planted in their homes, had rumours and lies spread about them and were beaten up by police in their homes and gardens. The whole community came under attack and there are some very good photos including a horrific picture of a woman about to be battered while standing in her garden as a horseback officer gallops by with his baton drawn ready to hit her around the head.

I sincerely hope that Camden Council and the UK government thinks very carefully before allowing this lab to go ahead. If it does then local people will be branded as "terrorists" and "extremists" for standing up for ourselves I'm sure...and the govt plants will say that genuine campaigners are "troublemakers / hooligans / rent a mob" for protesting....I think it no coincidence that the area has recently been made a "dispersal zone".

So to clarify ...no I'm not distancing myself from my fellow campaigners and friends...and I support direct action ...however I do not support actual real genuine violent extremism any more than real activists, including SHAC do. I do not consider sending a tampon through the post to be violent extremism. i do not consider sending a letter to someone "violent extremism"....but the government does and they make a mockery of the term in it's real context and like i said ...war is something else altogether and if it necessary then it is necessary. The invasion of Iraq is not a war it is terrorism. That is what our government is capable of...and just as the people under Nazi Germany were spoonfed lies and propaganda and brainwashing so are the people in the UK about war, terrorism and extremism.

Yes Pat you are right...if the government tells the people that it is "necessary" to put a virus lab [or even a virus / immigration detention centre] in Kings Cross people will say "but the government is allowing it to happen so it must be alright". Well...Hitler said that to the people of Germany too.

I'm sure some body will say..."that's a bit of an extreme thing to say". ....

There has been some confusion around this....both regarding the lab plans and the campaign. The people from Mill Hill have asked that people respect that this is their campaign and that it is seperate from the Camden Lab campaign which is run by different people. We are asking the same as we agree.

The ukcmri plans are a bit more complicated than simply "moving the Mill Hill lab to Camden"...and this isn't the case. The Camden Lab is planned for Kings Cross behind the British Library. There have been postings titled Stop The Camden Animal Research Lab demos at Mill Hill which isn't where the Camden Lab demos have been held. ...these were at the Camden Town Hall and were very well attended and effective. There is avery good photo in the Camden New Journal of local people, community leaders and animal rights campaigners standing side by side on the steps of the Camden Town Hall. The backers for the lab planned for Camden are the Wellcome Trust, UCL, Cancer Research and the MRC.

Mill Hill lab demos against the NIMR are every Wednesday at Mill Hill.

For more info on the Camden Lab see www.myspace.com/stopcamdenanimallab or see UKCRMI

Thanks....Mandy x