British fertility expert urges end of ban on human therapeutic cloning research.

A leading British fertility expert has called upon the UK government to lift its ban on human therapeutic cloning research.

Lord Winston, a close friend of Prime Minister Tony Blair, said scientists in Britain were in a "bizarre situation" because they could use human embryos to investigate fertility, genetic disorders, and new contraceptives but not to potentially save patients' lives. "This seems to me to be an anomaly and logically wrong," he said.

According to Winston, much of the negative information about therapeutic cloning is being generated by small but vociferous pressure groups. "I have no doubt that if you ask anyone suffering from Parkinson's disease or any of these degenerative disorders...if it was possible to use tissue derived from a preimplanted embryo which would otherwise be discarded at the time of in vitro fertilization, the great overwhelming view of the public would be that it is not only morally desirable but morally right," he said.

Under Britain's 1990 Human Fertilization and Embryology Act, cloning human embryos for reproduction or research is forbidden. Last April, Britain extended this ban to include treatments for diseases, saying it needed more evidence of potential risks and benefits. At that time, an advisory board was established to review research and consult experts. The group is expected to report its findings sometime this year.

Winston alluded to the ban in a lecture on genetic engineering delivered to Britain's prestigious science academy the Royal Society, where he received an award for furthering public understanding of science. "I hope the government will come to take a consensus fairly rapidly," he said, adding that the reluctance to allow such research could be contributing to the "brain drain" of British scientists. "To some extent, we are giving a lead to other countries, and I have no doubt there will be some British scientists who will do this research in other countries."