§ Mr. Dalyellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if she will make a statement on the kidney card donor scheme.
§ Dr. OwenThe revised version of the card is now available and supplies will be sent to health authorities within the next week. While the original card remains valid as an expression of a person's 195W 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. Two million cards in the new form have so far been printed in addition to the 4 million distributed of the earlier type.
Although the number of kidneys becoming available for transplantation has been increasing* there is still an urgent need for more. At present over 800 people are waiting for a kidney transplant. I hope the revised card together with increases in the level of other forms of publicity will assist in persuading more people to become donors and in fostering co-operation amongst clinicians both of which are essential if more patients are to be helped.
* The numbers of kidney transplants recorded in Great Britain were:
1970 … … 274 1971 … … 315 1972 … … 460 1973 … … 453 1–1–74–18–11–74 … … 454