§ The Duke of Montroseasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many applications there have been to experiment with the use of specially created embryonic stem cell tissue in the treatment of 130WA Parkinson's disease and Huntington's chorea since 22 January; and in what ways it is proposed to use the embryonic tissues; and [FIL1484]
Whether they are aware of any experiments with the use of specially created embryonic stern cell tissue in the treatment of Parkinson's disease and Huntington's chorea having been undertaken in the United Kingdom before 22 January. [HU 485]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath)Any research in the United Kingdom involving the use of embryos to derive stem cells can only be carried out under licence from the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) under the strict conditions contained in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Research Purposes) Regulations 2001 permit the use of embryos in research for Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease. The HFEA has not received any licence application for such research, but we understand that applications are being prepared.