Opposition spokesman Michael Farrugia has warned against the creation of waiting lists of prospective parents who want to have the IVF procedure done for free at Mater Dei Hospital because time was against them.

It was a shame that equipment for IVF treatment had been sitting idle at Mater Dei for the past five years when this could have been used to help couples who could not afford the procedure in private clinics.

Speaking during the debate in second reading of the Embryo Protection Bill, Dr Farrugia listed a number of shortcomings, including the fact that the Bill undermined the patient-doctor relationship because it made it mandatory for parents to apply to the Embryo Protection Authority for a licence to have children.

Questioning the reasoning behind such a clause, he said prospective parents already underwent a psychological trauma. It was unacceptable that the legislator sought to increase their suffering by requesting a licence to have the procedure. The Opposition insisted this function ought to be removed altogether from the authority’s powers.

Dr Farrugia said it was similarly unacceptable that children born of IVF would be tagged as such in their medical files. These provisions all indicated the Bill had been rushed; if a medical practitioner had been involved in its drafting, such mistakes would not have occurred. Some mistakes even went against cardinal principles in medicine.

With regard to the fertilisation of two egg cells only, the Bill was one-size-fits-all.

While fertilisation of just two egg cells could be beneficial in younger couples who both enjoyed strong gametes, the procedure could not equally benefit couples in their late 30s.

It was unfair that the medical profession should be subjected to harsh penalties, such as fines up to €15,000 and imprisonment if this rule was not observed.

The Health Minister was showing distrust in the medical profession. He had to protect the profession from unnecessary all-encompassing penalties.

Anthony Zammit (PL) welcomed the Bill but hoped the Government would not have to buy new equipment for the IVF clinic because that procured five years ago had been left in mothballs. He agreed with setting up a regulatory body but insisted it should be composed exclusively of health professionals.

He also argued that it should be up to the specialists to decide how many embryos to implant according to the age and health condition of the recipients.

­­­He was sure that the fines envisaged in the Bill would not be applied because the professionals were highly ethical. He agreed with the prohibition of making a financial market from such a process.