US Congress considers human cloning ban

A bill has been introduced into the United States Congress which aims to impose a total ban on human cloning.

The sponsors of the bill are Republican politicians who view human cloning as morally indefensible and medically unsound.

If they are successful, a ban which already exists in five American states will be extended to the whole country.

However, a leading American expert in the field has said Congress will be making a big mistake if it approves the bill.

Dr Panos Zavos -- who belongs to an international consortium on human cloning -- said it was inevitable that the technology would produce a baby within two years and Congress should be ensuring instead that the science was properly developed.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service