Clause 27 - Possession of anatomical specimens away from licensed premises
Human Tissue Bill
4:15 pm
Dr Andrew Murrison (Westbury, Conservative)
I beg to move amendment No. 104, in
clause 27, page 17, line 8, at end insert
'and
(iii) is transferring to or using the specimen for the purposes given in Part 1 of Schedule 1 in licensed premises.'.
The amendment deals with a concern that has been raised with several members of the Committee by the Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland, which is worried about the position that a designated person might find themselves in, particularly in relation to subordinates to whom work might be delegated on the designated person's behalf. The amendment would ensure that the subordinate complied with the law in a more direct way, rather than the responsibility being shouldered entirely by the designated person. It goes back to a theme that we discussed earlier, whereby it seems that a remote individual may be expected to shoulder a great deal of responsibility under the Bill. The amendment would put the onus firmly on a subordinate who is working under the direction, whether directly or indirectly, of a designated person.
Incidentally, the amendment would also make it easier to transfer specimens from licensed premises to, for example, a lecture theatre, where they would be used for a scheduled purpose, such as education. At present, there is a lack of clarity in the Bill about whether that is possible. A lecture theatre might not be
a licensed place, yet we can think of many reasons for transferring material from a licensed place to a medical school; for example, to instruct medical students.