15 Morningside Road, Edinburgh EH10 4DP, Tel: 0131 447 6394 or 0774 298 4459
15 September 2003
The Scottish Council on Human Bioethics calls on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) to seriously consider and regulate, as soon as possible, the creation of cloned human-animal hybrid embryos.
This follows the controversial creation, announced in London today by Professor Panayiotis Zavos, of "human-cow" hybrid embryos by inserting human DNA into the eggs of a cow. These embryos lived for around a fortnight but Prof. Zavos indicated that human-cow embryos were "theoretically viable" and could have been implanted into a woman's womb.
The Scottish Council on Human Bioethics (SCHB) is extremely worried about these developments since the creation of such human-animal embryos is not prohibited by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990. Furthermore, if these embryos are not considered as human embryos, then a licence for their creation would not even be required from the HFEA in the UK.
Dr. Calum MacKellar, Director of Research of the SCHB, indicated that "there is a legal vacuum concerning these human-animal hybrid embryos in the UK and the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority should examine them as soon as possible" adding that "Prof. Zavos is ill-advised in stating that these entities would not pose any ethical problems, indeed the creation of such embryos would causes great offence to many amongst the general public".
Note: The Scottish Council on Human Bioethics was formed in 1997 as an independent, non-partisan council composed of physicians, lawyers, psychologists, ethicists and other professionals from disciplines associated with medical ethics. The principles to which the SCHB subscribes are set out in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted and proclaimed by the UN General Assembly by resolution 217A (III) on 10 December 1948.
Contact: Dr. Calum MacKellar, Scottish Council on Human Bioethics, Eric Liddell Centre, 15 Morningside Road, Edinburgh EH10 4DP, Tel: 0131 447 6394, E-mail (provisional): schb@mail.com