§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will introduce legislation to make it clear whether, in the case of the death by accident of a kidney donor who has completed the donor card printed by the Central Office of Information, that card is sufficient legal justification for removing the relevant organs without contacting the next-of-kin.
Lieut.-Col. Colin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will introduce legislation to make it clear whether, in the case of the death by accident of a kidney donor who has completed the donor card printed by the Central Office of Information, that card is sufficient legal justification for receiving the relevant organs without contacting the next-of-kin.
§ Sir K. JosephNo. Section 1(1) of the Human Tissue Act 1961 provides,inter alia, that the person lawfully in possession of a body may authorise the use for therapeutic purposes of any specified part of that body when the deceased 182W person, in his lifetime, has so requested in writing.
The interpretation of this section, including the words
… the person lawfully in possession of his body after his death …is a matter for the courts. In my view, however, it is appropriate in any case to seek the views of the next-of-kin before kidneys are removed for transplantation purposes, and I am advised that this is not of major significance in limiting their supply. Indeed, the number of kidneys transplanted during the last 12 months was 472, an increase of over 100 over the previous year.