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Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [HL]

My Lords, the Bill seeks to prohibit placing in a woman any embryo, sperm or egg other than a permitted embryo, sperm or egg. New Section 3ZA defines permitted embryos and gametes. With respect to gametes, this means that only an egg produced or extracted from a woman’s ovary or sperm produced or extracted from a man’s testes can be used in treatment. I would like to make it clear that nothing in the Bill prevents the creation or use of other types of gamete for the purpose of research. Natural gametes, matured or grown in vitro, can still be used in treatment, due to the nature of the definition of gametes found in the Bill. In response to the Science and Technology Committee in another place, we accepted that, in future, artificially created gametes could offer new fertility treatments for people unable to produce sperm or eggs. Amendment No. 5 introduces a regulation-making power that will allow the definitions of permitted eggs and sperm to be expanded to include eggs and sperm that have been developed from one or more cells of a woman or man as part of a prohibited process to treat infertility. These gametes are often referred to as artificial gametes and, on our current understanding of the science, would be gametes derived from somatic cells—that is, not naturally derived from the germ cells residing in the testes or ovaries, but derived from cells in, for example, the skin or blood. As noble Lords have said, research on this is being undertaken around the world in the hope of creating a non-invasive form of IVF. It is hoped that this research will help those people unable to produce gametes naturally to have children who are genetically related to them. It is also theoretically possible that this technology could be used for the purpose of enabling same-sex couples to have children who are genetically related to both parents. This is an exciting development. While we are keen to see research continue, the application and safety of developments in this area are not known, which makes it difficult for any power to include the necessary safeguards on how this is exercised in the future. I realise that the scope of this amendment is not as wide as the one moved in Committee and that many concerns have been removed. However, issues of discrimination have to be considered, including, for example, whether it may be possible for same-sex couples to use this technology to create children using their combined genetic material and whether it would be proportionate to prevent them benefiting from this treatment in the future. It is important that all these factors are known at the time of discussion in Parliament. To date, the Government have not believed that this is the right time for the House to decide whether it should be possible to enable this use of technology through secondary legislation. On balance, the Government decided that such a significant and potentially far-reaching development should be subject to full parliamentary debate and consultation when further data on the techniques are available. That is why there is no such provision in the Bill. However, I have listened carefully to the debate this afternoon. The fact is that support—albeit qualified support—is coming from all parts of the House. Therefore, I would like to take this amendment back. There is nothing further that we can do with it in this House because Third Reading follows Report stage so quickly. There is no way in which the Government could consider this issue in depth, as we would have to, before Third Reading. Therefore, I ask the noble Lord to withdraw his amendment, on the understanding that we will look at it further in the other place. I cannot give a commitment that we will move on it in the other place, but I am certainly prepared to discuss this issue further with colleagues and to see where we go from there.