§ Mr. ChurchillTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what is her best estimate of the numbers of patients in end-stage renal failure dying each year due to non-availability of sufficient donor organs; what steps she is taking to reduce destruction of such organs; and if she will enter into discussions with the medical profession with a view to establishing an organ transplant opt-out register in place of the current donor cards.
§ Mr. SackvilleInformation is not available centrally on the number of people who die while awaiting a kidney transplant. People awaiting kidney transplants may live for many years and may die from causes other than kidney failure. The Government are continuing to take a number of initiatives to increase the number of donor organs available for transplant. The Department of Health is in regular contact with the medical profession on this subject but the legislation for the presumption of consent unless otherwise indicated, regardless of the views of relatives, does not have widespread support.