Catholic World News News Feature

Parliament approves hybrid embryos; abortion debate next May 20, 2008

The British Parliament has approved creation of "hybrid" embryos containing both human and animal tissue.

By a vote of 336- 176, Parliament defeated a proposed amendment to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill that would have banned research involving hybrid embryos. Prime Minister Gordon Brown had argued that the research could yield important medical benefits. That argument apparently persuaded most members of Parliament, after the government leadership allowed a "free" vote, not enforcing party discipline on the measure.

The next important debate on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill will involve an effort to limit legal abortion to the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. The law now allows abortion up until the 24th week. Health minister Dawn Primarolo argued against the proposal in a BBC interview, saying that there babies born between the 20th and 24th weeks of pregnancy are not likely to survive. "There is no science that shows us that the survival rates have changed since we took the decision to have the time limit at 24 weeks," she added.

As Parliament takes up the debate on abortion, the London Daily Telegraph has reported a study showing that nearly 4,000 women have had 4 or more abortions in their lives, and some women have aborted as many as 8 babies. The Telegraph characterized the figures as showing a "grotesquely bleak" picture of casual abortion use.