Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee 23 April 2025
Our final petition is PE2146, lodged by Jamie Connelly, which calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to allow couples and individuals to purchase altruistically donated eggs from private clinics for use in NHS-funded IVF treatment, and to instruct NHS Scotland to create a clear clinical pathway to support those using private donor eggs.
The SPICe briefing explains that large NHS-hosted clinics provide both private and NHS fertility treatment, for which there are separate waiting lists. Those in receipt of NHS treatment are fully funded by the NHS, while those who do not meet the criteria for NHS treatment can be offered private, fully self-funded treatment. That self-funded treatment is mostly provided by the NHS service at cost. However, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is slightly different in that it partners with the only private clinic in Scotland in providing paid-for care. That private clinic is not for profit and partners with an egg donation supplier in Spain. The briefing notes that many of the private clinics in the UK will source donor eggs from suppliers abroad. However, there are risks associated with sourcing eggs abroad and with their transportation.
The petitioner and his partner were told that the likelihood of getting donor eggs through the NHS would be “miniscule” as the waiting time is potentially more than 30 years. He reports that the NHS in Scotland operates on an all-or-nothing policy, which means that, if patients source eggs from elsewhere, they will lose all NHS funding for IVF. My goodness—with a wait of 30 years, you would have to register at birth for it to be of any use to you at all.
In its response to the petition, the Scottish Government states that it has always been clear that couples who are eligible for NHS fertility treatment should not pay for any aspect of their treatment, and this includes the purchase and use of donor gametes. It also states that couples who require an altruistic egg donor may wait between three to four years for treatment. This wait time can change depending on donor availability and we are aware that NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is planning several campaigns this year to recruit egg and sperm donors, which will hopefully reduce the waiting times.
Do members have any comments or suggestions for action???