Local MEP Appointed to Committee to Investigate Human Genetics

12.00.00am GMT Mon 22nd Jan 2001

Diana Wallis, Lib Dem Euro-MP for Yorkshire and the Humber, has been chosen to serve on a temporary European Parliament Committee to investigate Human Genetics and new technologies in modern medicine.

The committee will deliberate for the next year, taking evidence from experts and producing their findings in a report for the European Parliament with recommendations for future action.

"This committee will look at the legal, social and ethical issues surrounding human genetics and new medical technologies," commented Diana Wallis MEP. "It is not limited to the present day, either, as we are charged with looking ahead to what new potential developments may be on the horizon."

The European Parliament investigation comes amid worries over the ethical basis of research that has recently produced a genetically modified monkey in the USA, and public fears about so-called 'designer babies.' Diana Wallis has been appointed to the committee as a solicitor and Member of the Legal Affairs Committee.

"Clearly there is a lot of scope investigations on an EU-wide basis," Diana Wallis continued. "Scientific advances and research are not controlled by state boundaries and affect citizens across Europe. The UK has much to contribute to the debate, given the expertise presented in the Donaldson Report and our sophisticated licence system, currently being debated in the House of Lords, in the form of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Regulations.

"As the democratic institution of the European Union, the Parliament needs to be informed on the subject, and that is what this committee has been set up to do."