FIONA Bruce MP spoke to Mothers’ Union groups including the Middlewich group, about her campaign against the introduction of a new mitochondrial transfer technique.


Fiona, who is a member of the Mothers’ Union Middlewich group, addressed members at the annual general meeting at St John’s Church in Hartford.


She spoke about her Parliamentary campaign to challenge the proposed introduction by the Government later this year of the mitochondrial transfer technique.


The aim of the technique is to prevent the transfer of mitochondrial disease from a mother to a child and while it is estimated it could help five to 10 people a year, Fiona claims there are concerning side-effects.


Fiona said: “There are grave concerns about the safety of this technique, with warnings of the risks of sterility, impaired learning, premature ageing or slowed metabolism in any child born as a result.


“This technique would involve removing some material from one woman’s egg and replacing it with another to create a genetically altered human being.


“If approved by Parliament the UK would be the first country in the world to do so, in some 60 other countries it is expressly prohibited.”


The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority are waiting to carry out several experiments before clinical treatment will be offered.


Fiona added: “No mother wants to conceive a child with mitochondrial disease but neither do they wish to conceive a child with genetic abnormalities because we have rushed into introducing scientific techniques which should have been tested more robustly.”