Question
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 19 July (WA 162), what is the evidence to suggest that the proposed treatment is feasible; and how that relates to the Written Answer by Baroness Thornton on 6 April (WA 406) or the statement in the initial application for research licence R0152 that no further animal work is needed.
Answer
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority’s (HFEA) research licence committee makes its decisions based on the merit of each individual application, taking all evidence provided into account. The HFEA has advised that it does not comment on the feasibility of proposed treatments. The HFEA has advised that its research licence committee decided in considering the initial application for research licence R0152 that the research is ““necessary or desirable”” as required by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990.