LONDON (AP) -- A former British science minister says medical research is being jeopardized by activists who have convinced transport companies to stop importing animals into the U.K. for scientific experiments.

Following campaigns by animal rights groups, several ferry companies and airlines now refuse to transport mice, rats and rabbits intended for laboratory testing.

Paul Drayson, a former science minister, said that was "choking off vital research" into deadly diseases like Alzheimer's and cancer. He spoke in The Times newspaper on Wednesday.

Fewer than 1 percent of the animals used in British labs come from abroad but scientists say those particular animals, which are often genetically modified to model human diseases, are the most important.