§ Mr. Dalyellasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement on the kidney donor card scheme in Scotland.
§ Mr. William RossA revised version of the card for use in Scotland is now available. Supplies will be sent to health boards and local authorities within the next week and to a wide number of other bodies shortly thereafter. While the original card remains valid as an expression of a person's wishes under Section 1(1) of the Human Tissue Act 1961, the revised version also has provision for the donor's next of kin to indicate that he does not object to the request being complied with. 400,000 cards in the new form have been printed initially. About the same number of the earlier type have been distributed since the kidney donor584W card scheme came into operation in November 1972.
It is my hope that the new card will encourage more people to offer their kidneys for transplantation after death and that clinicians will be in a better position to take up such offers.