[UK] MPs say lift ban on reproductive human cloning

The creation of a creature that is half-man/half-animal may be thought to be the stuff of a science fiction novel, but this week an influential group of MPs will recommend that the government considers overturning its ban on such experiments.

In a report into human embryo research in Britain, the commons science and technology committee will suggest that human embryos could be implanted into animals for research purposes. It will also say parents should be allowed to chose the sex of their child for 'social reasons' and that the cloning of human embryos should be allowed for medical purposes.

The report is so controversial that it has split the MPs who sat on the committee and is likely to see a number of them condemn its findings as too 'pro-science'.

A leaked copy of the report has been obtained by The Observer. It concludes that 'chimeric' experiments - a mixture of genetic material in one animal or human - could produce 'valuable and highly ethical research in the future'. It states that the current Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act's prohibition...