Swedish MP and EU Minister, Birgitta Ohlsson, has been awarded our ‘Parliamentarian of the Month’ for February 2018. Ms Ohlsson has been a strong driving force in animal rights issues from day one of her political career. The feminist and animal rights activist was elected to the Swedish Parliament at the age of 27, and has been committed to ending cosmetics testing on animals since the issue first came to her attention in her days as a student.

In support of Cruelty Free International’s campaign, Ms Ohlsson recently submitted a written question to the Swedish Parliament regarding the establishment of a UN Convention in order to ban animal testing in cosmetics, with the Parliament responding that they are following the issue with great attention.

The Swedish MP acknowledges the difficulty of bringing this issue to the table at the United Nations, “the United Nations are swamped with complex issues, such as wars and conflicts,” but believes that is all the more reason to push the global ban forward, as “this is a comparatively simple issue as we already have the research, science, and solutions.”

Ms Ohlsson has a final message for those thinking about signing the petition and how they can protect animal welfare; “Safe alternatives to animal testing in cosmetics have existed and been used for a long time. There is no reason for or need to sacrifice an animal for the sake of cosmetics. Act now and contribute to a global ban!”