Britain to ban human cloning

Britain is set to become the first country in the world to ban human cloning as part of a strategy to assure the public that genetic technology will be harnessed for beneficial use only.

Conversely, genetic tests for conditions such as cancer are to be made more available.

Health Secretary Alan Milburn is expected to announce on Thursday that the government is bringing forward legislation to within months to outlaw human cloning.

Cloning work is currently restricted to scientists granted licences.

But Mr Milburn will say that the only way to ensure human cloning never takes place is to ban it by law.

There are boundaries that won't be breached

Health secretary Alan Milburn

The health secretary will stress that while Britain should aim to become a world leader in the genetic revolution in healthcare, no progress can be made unless strict boundaries are set to reassure the public about genetic technology.

"We need to deal with public concern about those advances and recognise that public concerns are legitimate," he will tell scientists and doctors at the International Centre for Life in Newcastle.

"There are boundaries that won't be breached."

Genetic screening

Mr Milburn will also unveil plans for £30m extra investment in genetic screening.

A national agency is to be created to make sure patients are offered the same genetic tests by the NHS regardless of where they live.

Mr Milburn will also try to allay fears that the results of genetic testing could be misused by the insurance industry.

He is likely to announce that various genetic tests for cancers will be offered on the NHS.

Speaking on the BBC Today programme, Mr Milburn said: "There's going to be no `big bang' in the NHS or anywhere else when it comes to advances in genetics, it's more likely we will see a slow burn with developments taking place over time, perhaps the next 10 or 20 years.

"We are now developing new tests for certain forms of cancer and, hopefully down the line, for people's predisposition to common diseases like diabetes or heart disease."

Mr Milburn said the advances in technology could help the finances of the NHS as well as patients' health, thanks to increased screening for common conditions.

"As we improve health services and move towards a model of health care where you can predict and prevent diseases developing, there should be significant financial savings.

"I believe that overall these benefits will be enormous for health care but potentially could also bring about some real financial gains."

Various tests exist which may show a genetic predisposition for certain types of cancer, although few indicate a very high chance of developing the disease.

A report in a national newspaper on Wednesday suggested that government plans to screen for prostate cancer, announced earlier this year, could lead to much higher critical illness premiums for all customers.

Many prostate cancer cases go undiagnosed for many years - any substantial change to this would increase the number of policies requiring a payout.

Rising premiums

A consultation paper circulated around insurance companies last week, reported the Daily Telegraph, suggested that policies might have to either exclude prostate cancer altogether, or premiums would have to rise in general.

Critics of any plans to extend genetic testing say there are too few trained scientists to cope with the sudden increase in demand.

There is also concern that biotech companies will patent emerging gene tests and charge the NHS for each time they are used, leaving the health service with a mounting bill.

The results of a gene test suggesting a slight pre-disposition to cancer would not necessarily stop the cancer developing, although a patient could adopt a healthier lifestyle, or, in extreme circumstances, opt for an operation such as breast removal to stop the disease emerging.

The Commons Science and Technology Committee want a voluntary ban by the industry on using positive results from tests, which, it is feared, could increase premiums

But they say the ban should not apply to negative test results, which can show a person is free of a condition