Section 3 — Use of part of body of deceased person for transplantation, research etc

Part of Human Tissue (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3 – in the Scottish Parliament at 9:30 am on 2 February 2006.

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Photo of Mike Rumbles Mike Rumbles Liberal Democrat 9:30, 2 February 2006

In introducing his amendments, John Farquhar Munro set out well why the bill is before us, which is to save lives by increasing organ donations. Last year, 52 people died because there were not enough organ donations and 700 people are still on the waiting list for donations.

In Scotland we are doing slightly better than the rest of the UK. Statistics that have just been published show that 21 per cent of people in the UK carry an organ donation card, as John Farquhar Munro and Stewart Maxwell said, but in Scotland the figure is nearer 25 per cent. The card is completely worthless, because it has no legal standing whatever. The card has no force in law, which is why the Executive introduced the bill; it wants to ensure that the card has legal effect. We had a little bit of to-doing at stage 2, but I am delighted that the Executive has ensured that the 25 per cent of Scots who carry cards and are on the register will have their wishes legally enforced as soon as the bill is passed.

Stewart Maxwell said that no one has the right to overrule his wishes. That is correct. The bill is all about authorisation, which the amendments fail to recognise. The whole basis of our national health service is informed consent, not presumed consent. In other words, it is not a case of doctor knows best or the state knows best.

I refer to some of the evidence that the Health Committee received; I wish that some members had turned up to listen to it. According to Dr MacKellar of the Scottish Council on Human Bioethics, the system of presumed consent, which John Farquhar Munro advocates, is supported only by the British Medical Association; none of the other medical organisations is in favour of it, because it would be a breach of the European convention on human rights and of bioethics. The argument that John Farquhar Munro, Stewart Maxwell, Dennis Canavan and others have made that an opt-out system would increase donations is wrong and flawed; it would not do so.