The Coalition for Choice
I wish to express my support for the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill and my opposition to the amendment proposed by Nadine Dorries MP (Con, Mid Beds) that would restrict abortion to the first twenty weeks of gestation as opposed to the current twenty-four weeks1.
The key proposals of the bill are
- ensuring that all human embryos outside the body – however they are created - are subject to regulation
- regulation of inter-species embryos created from a combination of human and animal genetic material for research
- a ban on sex selection of offspring for non-medical reasons
- retention of a duty to take account of the welfare of the child in providing fertility treatment, but removal of the reference to ‘the need for a father’
- recognising same-sex couples as legal parents of children conceived through the use of donated sperm, eggs or embryos
- altering the restrictions on the use of data collected by the regulator to make it easier to do follow-up research
- increasing the scope of legitimate embryo research activities, subject to controls.
The Coalition for Choice, set up in part by the Liberal Conspiracy, is campaigning in favour of the Bill without amendment.
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1 - in both the current situation and the proposed amendment, it would be possible under very narrow circumstances for abortions to be performed at any stage; this is rare.
