The vote on the Welsh Government’s Human Transplantation legislation that took place yesterday, was for me, very much an issue of personal conscience; therefore it was only right that my own party allowed this issue to be a free vote. 43 AMs supported the legislation, I was one of 8 that did not. I thought I would set out my thoughts. I supported the underlying principles of this legislation. With more than 400 Welsh patients currently on the transplant waiting list, this is an important issue that must be addressed. Organ donation is proven to save lives and I welcome government initiatives to raise awareness of the need to increase the pool of potential donors, to encourage more people to carry donor cards and most importantly, to properly discuss these issues with their families, so that an individuals personal wish are expressly known. Experience form other counties that have brought forward presumed consent legislation has not lead to the desired result of more organs being available. To me it’s a matter of principle that the state do not own our bodies and that the freedom to donate organs from one individual to another is the ultimate gift of life which is done in the spirit of altruism not compulsion, or even in this case, potential apathy. I had a large postbag with many constituents taking the time to set-out very thoughtful what there views are. However, of all the pieces of correspondence I received, only one was in support of this legislation and wanted me to vote in favour of it. The plans in Wales are based on opting out rather than opting in, which I firmly believe is a dreadful mistake. There is no evidence that this change will lead to more organs being available. What would make a difference is educating children in schools and ensuring that organ donation is a part of life that we can understand and appreciate.
Posted on: Wed, 03 Jul 2013 17:39:50 +0000
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