| Together
with the University of Glamorgan and Techniquest, the Wales
Gene Park organised a Citizens' Jury of 16-19 year olds held
over three days in September 2004. The members of the jury
were recruited on the basis of a stratified random sample,
designed broadly to reflect the composition of the 16-19 age
group - approximately equal numbers of males and females,
with approximately two-thirds in full-time education.
To view the jury's demographic breakdown click
here.
The jury addressed
the question: 'Designer Babies: what choices should we be
able to make?' Over the three days the jurors listened to
witnesses speak on various topics and were able to question
them.
To view the programme
of the event click
here.
The witnesses represented a broad range of views, and also
included personal testimony from people affected by issues
surrounding genetic conditions and reproduction.
To
find out more about the witnesses click
here.
To view video clips
of the witnesses' testimonies click on the links below:
(nB
these files are in .mov format and can be viewed with the
QuickTime software which can be downloaded from the following
site www.apple.com/quicktime/products/qt/)
The
jurors also watched a section of a BBC documentary on the
Whitaker family.
After
listening to and questioning the witnesses, the members of
the jury spent time gathering their thoughts and reached a
conclusion – the verdict.
The
majority of the jury was in favour of people being allowed
to 'design babies' to prevent genetic conditions from being
passed on and that it is acceptable to design babies for the
purpose of curing existing children with serious medical conditions,
'saviour siblings'. However, the jury opposed the idea of
designing babies for no medical reason and came down strongly
in favour of regulation.
The event, which
received wide press coverage, was a great success and showed
the willingness of young people to engage with the issues
arising from new genetic and reproductive technologies. The
jury presented the outcome of their deliberations to the Welsh
Assembly Government at the beginning of October. The verdict
will also be presented to the Human Genetics Commission and
the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority.
To read an example
of the press coverage the event received click
here.
The
dissemination of the Citizens' Jury verdict was sponsored
by GE Healthcare.
Read
the jury's verdict.
For
more information about the Citizens' Jury please contact Dr
Anita Shaw, Education Director, Techniquest
on 02920 475475 or Dr Rachel Iredale at the University
of Glamorgan (riredale@glam.ac.uk). |
