Cadaveric Organs: Donation (Hansard, 2 February 1988)

§ Lord Hatch of Lusby
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, the Government give strong encouragement to the donation of cadaveric organs for transplantation. Our policy is formulated within the framework of the Human Tissue Act 1961, which is based on the principle that organ donation is a voluntary act of generosity.

§ Lord Hatch of Lusby
My Lords, perhaps the Minister will answer two supplementary questions. Is it the case that at present fewer than half of the potential donors of organs have their organs removed when they are medically dead? Secondly, do the Government support the medical Royal Colleges' report opposing the American system of required request in which relatives have a veto over whether or not organs are removed? Under that system, hospitals must consult relatives before the removal of organs.

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, as regards the first supplementary question, the suggestion is that fewer than half of such organs are removed when the individuals are not medically dead. I am afraid that I do not know the answer. However, the Government believe that the use of organs from living donors should be restricted and, where possible, gradually eliminated. In all cases there must be clear evidence that the consent of the donor has been freely given and is not motivated by financial considerations. In addition, relatives should approve of such a donation.

§ Lord Ennals
My Lords, in view of what are sometimes lethally long periods of waiting for an appropriate organ for transplant, will the Minister agree that the time has come for a new campaign to secure support for organ donation? Have the Government re-examined, or will they re-examine, the proposals for opting out rather than opting in in order to make organs that could save lives more readily available?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, a major campaign to promote the organ donor card was launched in 1984. National organisations have been persuaded to mount campaigns. The department is currently co-operating with British Telecom in a scheme to include organ donor cards with all telephone bills in the London area. In 1987, the department distributed about 5½ million donor cards.

Lord Paget of Northampton
My Lords, ever since donor cards came in, I have carried one. I have said that any organ of mine is available for anyone who can use it. I am now 80 years of age. My organs have had a roughish life. I have had 30 years of gout. I have a certain sneaking sympathy for anyone who has an organ to offer!

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, the fitness or otherwise of the organs of the noble Lord would depend on a clinical judgment made by the doctor concerned.

§ Lord Hatch of Lusby
My Lords, I believe that the Minister misunderstood my first supplementary question. I asked whether it is the case that fewer than half of the organs donated voluntarily, have been used. Perhaps I may also ask the Minister whether he is now saying that the Government disapprove of the right of an individual to donate an organ irrespective of the wishes of surviving relatives.

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, my answer to the first question asked by the noble Lord is exactly the same. Even if I misunderstood the question that was first asked, I still do not know the answer. As regards the second question, the Government believe that medical staff in the United Kingdom would in practice always wish to approach relatives before removing organs, even if the law did not require them to do so.

§ Lord Hatch of Lusby
My Lords, the medical Royal Colleges' working party report (which I understood was accepted by the Government) opposes the method known as required request which is in use in the United States. Do the Government support that report and its opposition to that method, or do they repudiate the report of the working party?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, to the best of my knowledge and belief, the Government have not commented on the report to which the noble Lord refers. We believe that it is too early to draw definitive conclusions. Evidence from the United States, which implemented such legislation in 1985, shows what I can only describe as mixed results. We are uncertain whether the American experience will be repeated if similar legislation is enacted in the United Kingdom.

Lord Morris
My Lords, will my noble friend do everything in his power to persuade the noble Lord who has asked the Question to make an immediate donation?

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, I encourage all Members of your Lordships' House to carry a donor card.

§ Lord Mackie of Benshie
My Lords, does the Minister mean that if I wish to leave my liver to the nation—it is an organ which has stood up to a considerable amount of abuse—my relations, on my death, may go contrary to my wishes? Surely that must be wrong.

§ Lord Skelmersdale
My Lords, I mean exactly that.