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1

 

House of Commons

 
 

Tuesday 3rd June 2008

 

Public Bill Committee Proceedings

 

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [Lords]


 

(Except Clauses 4, 11, 14 and 23, Schedule 2, and any new Clauses or new Schedules relating


 

to the termination of pregnancy by registered medical practitioners)


 

[First and Second Sittings]


 

Dawn Primarolo

 

Agreed to

 

That—

 

(1)  

the Committee shall (in addition to its first meeting at 10.30 a.m. on Tuesday

 

3rd June) meet—

 

(a)  

at 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 3rd June;

 

(b)  

at 9.00 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Thursday 5th June;

 

(c)  

at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 10th June;

 

(d)  

at 9.00 a.m. and 1.00 p.m. on Thursday 12th June;

 

(e)  

at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. on Tuesday 17th June;

 

(2)  

the proceedings shall be taken in the following order: Clauses 1 to 3; Clause

 

5; Schedule 1; Clauses 6 to 10; Clauses 12 and 13; Schedules 3 and 4; Clauses

 

15 to 22; Clauses 24 to 28; Schedule 5; Clauses 29 to 56; Schedule 6; Clauses

 

57 to 65; Schedule 7; Clause 66; Schedule 8; Clauses 67 to 69; new Clauses

 

(not relating to the termination of pregnancy by registered medical

 

practitioners); new Schedules (not relating to the termination of pregnancy by

 

registered medical practitioners); remaining proceedings on the Bill.

 

(3)  

the proceedings shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a

 

conclusion at 7.00 p.m. on Tuesday 17th June.

 

 


 

Dawn Primarolo

 

Agreed to

 

That, subject to the discretion of the Chairman, any written evidence received by the

 

Committee shall be reported to the House for publication.

 



 
 

Public Bill Committee Proceedings: 3rd June 2008          

2

 

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [Lords] Continued

 
 

Mark Simmonds

 

Withdrawn  16

 

Clause  1,  page  1,  line  10,  after second ‘embryo’, insert ‘where fertilisation is

 

complete’.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not called  17

 

Clause  1,  page  1,  line  14,  at end insert—

 

‘(c)    

for this purpose fertilisation is not complete until the appearance of a two

 

cell zygote.’.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not called  18

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  5,  leave out from second ‘eggs’ to ‘but’ in line 6.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not called  19

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  10,  leave out from second ‘sperm’ to ‘and’ in line 11.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not called  20

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  12,  leave out ‘be read accordingly’ and insert ‘live human

 

gametes’.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not moved  21

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  leave out lines 13 to 21.

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  121

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  13,  leave out subsection (5).

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  122

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  14,  leave out ‘or’ and insert ‘and’.

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  123

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  15,  after ‘medicine’, insert ‘taking account of the bioethical

 

considerations of such developments’.

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  124

 

Clause  1,  page  2,  line  16,  after ‘section 4A’, insert ‘and section 3ZA’.

 

Clause Agreed to.

 

Clause 2 Agreed to.

 



 
 

Public Bill Committee Proceedings: 3rd June 2008          

3

 

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [Lords] Continued

 
 

Mr William Cash

 

Mr Edward Leigh

 

Not selected  14

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  1,  leave out subsection (5).

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Mr Andrew Lansley

 

Withdrawn  1

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  7,  at the end insert ‘except when the egg has in prescribed

 

circumstances undergone a prescribed process designed to prevent the transmission of

 

serious or life-threatening mitochondrial diseases.’.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Mr Andrew Lansley

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not called  2

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  leave out lines 19 to 24.

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  139

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  24,  at end insert ‘but this process must be by exchange of

 

gamete pronuclei not by transfer of somatic cell nuclei, and regulations must not be

 

permitted to be drafted until this procedure is reasonably considered to be safe.’.

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  140

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  24,  at end insert ‘but regulations cannot allow a permitted

 

egg or embryo to be created, altered or derived from somatic cell nuclear transfer.’.

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  141

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  24,  at end insert ‘but regulations may not be permitted to be

 

drafted until the specific procedure is reasonably considered to be safe, and the permitted

 

egg or embryo may not be created, altered or derived from somatic cell nuclear transfer.’.

 

Dr Evan Harris

 

Not selected  118

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  24,  at end insert—

 

‘(5A)    

Regulations may provide that—

 

(a)    

an egg can be a permitted egg, or

 

(b)    

a sperm can be a permitted sperm, even though the egg or sperm has been

 

developed from one or more human cells in a prescribed process

 

designed to treat infertility.

 

(5B)    

Regulations under subsection (5A) may—

 

(a)    

provide that any sperm be developed from one or more cells of a genetic

 

male and any egg be derived from one or more cells of a genetic female.

 

(b)    

specify, or otherwise restrict, the nature of the infertility which the

 

prescribed process is intended to treat.’.


 
 

Public Bill Committee Proceedings: 3rd June 2008          

4

 

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [Lords] Continued

 
 

Mark Simmonds

 

Mr Andrew Lansley

 

Mr William Cash

 

Mr David Amess

 

Withdrawn  3

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  29,  leave out subsection (6) and insert—

 

‘(6)    

 

(a)    

A person who places in a woman a human embryo which has been

 

created otherwise than by fertilisation is guilty of an offence.

 

(b)    

A person who is guilty of the offence specified in paragraph (a) is liable

 

on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10

 

years or a fine or both.’.

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  125

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  29,  leave out subsection (6) and insert—

 

‘(6)    

The Human Reproductive Cloning Act 2001 (c. 23) (which is not superseded by

 

the preceding provisions of this section) continues to have effect with the

 

following amendment:

 

(a)    

In section 1 (the offence) in subsection (1) after “fertilisation” insert “of

 

a permitted egg with a permitted sperm to create a permitted embryo”.

 

(b)    

After section 2 insert section 3:

 

“3      

Interpretation

 

Reference to a “permitted egg”, “permitted sperm” or “permitted

 

embryo” (which includes the singular and the plural), is a

 

reference to the term as defined in section 3ZA (1) to (4) of the

 

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008.”’.

 

Mr William Cash

 

Mr Edward Leigh

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  15

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  29,  leave out subsection (6).

 

Mr David Amess

 

Not selected  138

 

Clause  3,  page  3,  line  30,  at end insert—

 

‘(7)    

In this Act or in this section, a permitted egg, permitted sperm or permitted

 

embryo may not be created, altered or derived by or from—

 

(a)    

cloning,

 

(b)    

genetic modification,

 

(c)    

artificial gametes, or

 

(d)    

somatic cell nuclear transfer.’.

 

Clause Agreed to.

 

Clause 5 Agreed to.

 



 
 

Public Bill Committee Proceedings: 3rd June 2008          

5

 

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [Lords] Continued

 
 

Mark Simmonds

 

Withdrawn  22

 

Schedule  1,  page  54,  line  4,  at end insert—

 

‘(za)    

at end of sub-paragraph (2) insert—

 

    

“and no person may be appointed for more than six years in

 

total”.’.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Withdrawn  23

 

Schedule  1,  page  54,  line  17,  at end add—

 

‘4         

In sub-paragraph 8(2), after “experience”, insert “in at least one of the

 

activities that may be licensed under this Act”.

 

Schedule Agreed to.

 


 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not selected  24

 

Clause  6,  page  5,  line  21,  at end insert—

 

‘(2a)    

After each mention of “embryos” insert “and hybrid embryos”.’.

 

Mark Simmonds

 

Mr Andrew Lansley

 

Negatived on division  4

 

Clause  6,  page  5,  line  35,  leave out subsection (3).

 

Clause Agreed to.

 

Clause 7 Agreed to.

 


 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not selected  25

 

Page  6,  line  11,  leave out Clause 8.

 

Clause Agreed to.

 

Clause 9 Agreed to.

 


 

Mark Simmonds

 

Not selected  26

 

Page  8,  line  3,  leave out Clause 10.


 
 

Public Bill Committee Proceedings: 3rd June 2008          

6

 

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [Lords] Continued

 
 

Clause Agreed to.

 


 

Dawn Primarolo

 

Agreed to  39

 

Clause  12,  page  8,  leave out line 31 and insert—

 

‘(1)    

Section 12 of the 1990 Act (general conditions of licences under that Act) is

 

amended as follows.

 

(2)    

In’.

 

Dawn Primarolo

 

Agreed to  40

 

Clause  12,  page  8,  line  37,  at end insert—

 

‘(3)    

In subsection (2)—

 

(a)    

omit the “and” at the end of paragraph (a), and

 

(b)    

at the end of paragraph (b) insert “, and

 

(c)    

every licence under paragraph 3 of that Schedule, so far

 

as authorising activities in connection with the

 

derivation from embryos of stem cells that are intended

 

for human application.”.’.

 

Clause, as amended, Agreed to.

 

[Adjourned till Thursday 5th June at 9.00 a.m.


 
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