UK donor registries

Fertility services have been formally regulated in the UK since 1991, following implementation of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 (“The Act”). The Act established a statutory regulatory agency, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), whose responsibilities include licensing certain forms of fertility treatment and to maintain a register of information (s31). The register includes details relating to donors, recipients of donated gametes and embryos, and children born as a result of all donor procedures provided by a licensed treatment centr

Recipient and donor experiences of known egg donation: Implications for fertility counselling

ABSTRACT Objective: To explore the experiences of known egg donors and recipients in order to inform counselling practise. Background: Relatively little is known about known egg donation as a form of family-building in the UK, and on the experiences of individuals who have sought this form of donation. As such, there is a lack of guidance for fertility counselling in this area. Method: This was a cross-sectional, qualitative study. A purposive sample of four recipient women were recruited via a national support group for women experiencing Premature Ovarian Insufficiency (POI). Known egg donors (n = 3) and recipient men (n = 3) were recruited via a snowball sample, as identified by recipient women. In-depth interviews were conducted with participants. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Four themes were generated from the data: 1) ‘Doing anything’: existing relationships as the motivation to donate; 2) ‘It was my duty’: feelings of obligation to donate and to receive; 3) ‘Woman-to-woman’: a woman-centred experience; and 4) ‘Going through this together’: changed versus unchanged relationships. Conclusions: The study highlights a number of implications in known egg donation, arising from the relationships involved. It is recommended that these implications are considered by infertility counsellors in the provision of counselling, and by those undergoing known egg donation when seeking information and support, before, during and after the donation

1988-2008: Twenty years of BICA

The celebration of BICA’s twentieth anniversary in 2008 provides a timely opportunity to chart and review the Association’s achievements since its inception and, with an eye to the future, to identify continuing challenges - including those inherent in provisions in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill that is currently under parliamentary review

Saviour Siblings and the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Acts 1990 and 2008

In 2003, the case of R (on the Application of Quintavalle) v Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority1 dramatically brought into light the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 as outdated and inconsistent. Authorisations for saviour sibling treatment appeared futile as cases were decided illogically, leaving some patients having to seek treatment elsewhere. The procedure of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis alongside tissue typing embryos has been a huge breakthrough in treating children born with serious life threatening diseases. However, this essentially unforeseen technology is poorly regulated in the 1990 Act and has therefore resulted in the new Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008 which aims to make such legal rules regarding this kind of treatment both clear and concise. Whether this has been a success will be seen in time

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 and the issue of consent: the unresolved problem

Final Published versio

Die »Notwendigkeit eines Vaters für das Kind« und der Zugang lesbischer Frauen zur Reproduktionsmedizin (The child’s need for a father and access to assisted reproductive technologies by lesbians)

This chapter provides an overview of two broad areas relating to lesbians’ use of reproductive services for family building. First, it identifies strategies used in the building of ‘planned’ lesbian families – where a lesbian couple, the genetic mother and the social or ‘co’ mother, plan their family together - and in which children are raised from birth without the presence of a father. Second, it reviews policy and legislation regulating and restricting lesbians’ use of reproductive services in a number of countries both globally and specifically in Europe, before considering in more detail the ‘need for a father’ debate in the United Kingdom that resulted in legislative provisions effective from October 2009, formally ending discrimination against lesbians seeking to access fertility services in the United Kingdo

Still Hazy After All These Years: The Law Regulating Surrogacy

In 1997, Margaret Brazier was asked by the then Government to chair a review of the laws regulating surrogacy. The subsequent Brazier Report made a number of recommendations, including the need for greater regulation and the tightening of ‘expenses’ payments. Fifteen years on, the limitations in the legal regulation of surrogacy have become increasingly clear. Yet, none of Brazier's recommendations have been adopted, despite the clear opportunity for revisiting the regulation of surrogacy offered during the passage of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act (2008). In this paper, we revisit the Brazier Report in the light of subsequent developments and assess to what extent its key findings remain salient. Brazier's recommendations will thus provide a jumping off point for a critical analysis of the current state of the law regarding surrogacy

Did secularism win out? The debate over the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill

The debate over the 2008 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill marks the latest in a series of conflicts between secularism and religion in the public sphere. The failure of religiously motivated campaigners to alter the Bill's most substantive and controversial provisions, however, should not be seen as a victory for a homogeneous secular camp. Although campaigners motivated by religious belief were almost universally opposed to the Bill, secular campaigners reflected a more varied mix of opinion. Moreover, the degree of organisation and mobilisation shown by the religious lobby during the course of the debate, are a sign that attempts to secure a greater role for religion in the public sphere are likely to remain a prominent feature of British political life

Mitochondrial DNA transfer: some reflections from the United Kingdom

Recent medical advances and subsequent law reform in the United Kingdom have reignited debate about the ethics of mitochondrial DNA donation and transfer. The potential personal and societal benefits of permitting such practices must be considered against the ethical issues raised by them. It is argued that each objection is defeasible, assuming that safety and efficacy issues can be resolved. A brief description of the new provisions in the UK is provided