§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what distinction he has made between human embryos 435W described as (a) poly-nucleate embryos, (b) pre-embryos, (c) pre-implantation embryos and (d) early embryos in the Ninth Annual report of the HFEA. [146117]
§ Yvette CooperResearch using human embryos cannot be conducted without a licence issued by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and is subject to strict conditions laid down in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990. The HFEA publishes an annual report which includes details of all licensed research projects. These terms appear in the titles of research applications as submitted by researchers.
A poly-nucleate embryo is an embryo which contains cells with more than one nucleus. "Pre-embryos" and "early embryos" are not terms found in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, which refers to "embryos". A pre-implantation embryo describes an embryo before it is implanted into the womb.
§ Mr. AmessTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on recent events concerning the handling of frozen embryos at the Hampshire Clinic; and what other IVF clinics are under investigation by the HFEA. [146116]
§ Yvette CooperThe police are investigating recent events at the Hampshire Clinic and the North Hampshire Hospital Trust. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has suspended treatments at these clinics. No other IVF clinic is under investigation by the authority although all licensed centres have been asked to carry out a special audit of embryos and gametes in storage. We expect to receive the results of this audit shortly. All licensed centres are also subject to annual inspection.