Call For Evidence
Announcement Of Committee Inquiry: Presumed Consent For Organ Donation
The Health, Wellbeing and Local Government Committee has agreed to undertake an inquiry into whether presumed consent for organ donation should be introduced in Wales and is calling for those with an interest or expertise in this area to submit written evidence.
Background
Presumed consent as a means of obtaining organs for transplantation is an issue that has increasingly become a focus for public debate. There is currently a shortage of donors which leads to considerable suffering for the individuals and their families who need transplants. There are also concerns that social and health trends will in future lead to even greater demand for transplants.
Set against this are the concerns of those that have moral, ethical or religious concerns about the issue or of those that feel that the donation of organs is a matter for individuals and their families and that the state should not intrude into this sensitive area.
The Committee has agreed to undertake its own inquiry looking at issues such as the possible legal framework for a system of presumed consent, the views of the public and interested parties, and how any system in Wales would work in conjunction with the rest of the UK.
Although the Assembly does not currently have legislative competence in this area, there appears to be no fundamental reason why it could not seek the powers it would need by introducing a Legislative Competence Order (LCO).
Terms of Reference
The Committee has agreed the following terms of reference for the inquiry:
To examine arrangements for organ donation in Wales and to make recommendations on whether a system of presumed consent should be introduced in Wales with reference to:
Moral, ethical, religious and social views on presumed consent
The potential legal framework for such a system
Examples of weak and strong systems of presumed consent
Existing infrastructure, resources and organisations
¡Additional resources and infrastructure that would needed
The interaction between Welsh and UK Transplant arrangements
The views of the public, including minority groups.
Options for improving levels of organ donation without introducing presumed consent
Interested parties are invited to submit written evidence to the Clerk of the Committee at the address below, to arrive no later than Friday 14 March 2008. If possible, please supply an electronic version in MS Word or Rich Text format, either by e mail to health.wellbeing.localgovt.comm@wales.gsi.gov.uk or on a disk. Further guidance on the submission of evidence is attached.
The Committee may call on those who have submitted written evidence to supplement it in oral evidence to the Committee. Please indicate in your response whether you would be prepared to give evidence in person.
Witnesses should be aware that once written evidence has been submitted to the Committee it is treated as the property of the Committee. It is the Committee’s intention to place written papers on its website, and they may subsequently be printed with the report.
It is normal practice for the National Assembly to publish evidence provided to a committee. Consequently your response may appear in a report or in supplementary evidence to a report. The National Assembly will not publish information which it considers to be personal data.
In the event of a request for information submitted under UK legislation, it may be necessary to disclose the information that you provide. This may include information which has previously been removed by the National Assembly for publication purposes.
If you are providing any information, other than personal data, which you feel is not suitable for public disclosure, it is up to you to stipulate which parts should not be published, and to provide a reasoned argument to support this. The National Assembly will take this into account when publishing information or responding to requests for information.
13 February 2008
Membership of the Committee:
Jonathan Morgan AM (Chair), Lorraine Barrett AM, Irene James AM, Ann Jones AM, Helen Mary Jones AM, Dai Lloyd AM, Val Lloyd AM, Nick Ramsey AM, Jenny Randerson AM