SPUC condemns government funding boost for cloned-embryo research

Westminster, 9 December 2002--The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) has condemned today's announcement of an almost six-fold increase in funding for stem cell research - aimed at finding ways to generate tissue for spare-parts surgery from cloned human embryos.

In January 2001, Parliament approved government proposals to change the law to sanction stem cell research on cloned embryos - so-called therapeutic cloning.

SPUC general secretary Paul Tully commented: "The government is showing great arrogance and cynicism. This is a calculated move to promote profiteering at the expense of human beings at their youngest and most vulnerable stage - in their very first days of life. The DTI announced today that it will give £40 million over the coming three years to stem cell research; the previous grant was £7 million.

"In other countries, where cloning human embryos has been rejected on ethical grounds, treatments from adult-derived stem cells are already in the pipe-line. But Tony Blair believes that Britain can gain from the lack of international competition in the field of cloned-embryo stem-cell research."