Ms Julie Bishop (Curtin, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Prime Minister for Women's Issues) Share this | Hansard source

In speaking on the Prohibition of Human Cloning for Reproduction and the Regulation of Human Embryo Research Amendment Bill 2006, I pay tribute to the late Hon. John Lockhart AO QC, who chaired the independent reviews of Australia’s Prohibition of Human Cloning Act 2002 and the Research Involving Human Embryos Act 2002, which came to be known collectively as the Lockhart review. Sadly, John Lockhart died after a short illness, less than a month after he delivered the report. When I met with him to receive the report, in my capacity as the Minister for Ageing, he described his role as chair of this review as one of the most interesting projects in his career—and John Lockhart had a long and distinguished career.

John Lockhart practised at the Sydney bar between 1960 and 1978. He was appointed Queen’s Counsel in 1973. He was appointed to the Federal Court in 1978 and retired from that judicial office in 1999. He then became Executive Director of the Asian Development Bank from 1999 to 2002 and was a member of the appellate body of the World Trade Organisation from 2002. He was, in my view, one of Australia’s pre-eminent legal minds, and he was ideally suited to this task that the Australian government had asked of him.

His fellow committee members said he brought to the committee both objectivity and wisdom, derived from his long experience at the bar and on the bench. He constantly challenged them to explain their thoughts in a way that ‘non-experts’ could understand. He was always courteous, welcoming and empathetic to those who made submissions to the review. He understood there remained a wide range of deeply held views on the difficult issues considered by the committee. His last official act in chairing the review process and finalising the report of the review highlighted his intellect, his compassion and his humanity.

John Lockhart’s committee included some of Australia’s pre-eminent scientists, including gastroenterologist Professor Barry Marshall, who was awarded the 2005 Nobel Prize during his tenure on the committee; renowned neuroscientist Professor Peter Schofield; neurologist Associate Professor Pamela McCombe; and haematologist and clinical ethicist Associate Professor Ian Kerridge. Complementing these appointments was renowned lawyer and ethicist Professor Loane Skene. In conducting their review, the committee consulted widely and considered more than 1,000 written submissions, heard more than 100 personal representations, consulted with state and territory governments and met with people from all around Australia. The committee’s report and its 54 recommendations reflect the integrity with which the review was conducted and the careful consideration given to the scientific evidence and ethical views that were put forward.

In addition to the types of stem cell research currently permitted, the Lockhart review proposed the legalising of somatic cell nuclear transfer, or therapeutic cloning. The report of the Lockhart review is a powerful legacy. I have strongly recommended it to all members and senators as a document to guide their decision on this difficult topic.

We are faced with an ethical dilemma. This bill poses challenges to us: to define a human life and the point at which a group of cells can be described or defined as a human being. The bill also challenges us to consider the sacrifices we, individually and as a society, are prepared to make to discover treatments and possible cures for many chronic diseases and injuries. For many people, stem cell therapy offers the only hope of cure, particularly for people with diabetes, cystic fibrosis and leukaemia and those with spinal cord injuries. I have had a particular interest in stem cell research and Australia’s regulatory framework governing such research in terms of my current responsibilities as minister for science and in my former capacity as Minister for Ageing, during which time I instituted the review and, in June 2005, announced the composition of the Lockhart committee. Each state and territory government approved the committee appointments.

We know that adult stem cells are found in many organs and tissues of the body, where their main function is to replace cells that have died. These cells can be extracted from the bone marrow of patients or compatible donors, and are routinely used to treat diseases such as leukaemia. Umbilical cord blood is a particularly rich source of adult stem cells which may yield useful clinical applications. Embryonic stem cells have the unique potential to develop into all cell types in the body. In Australia, embryonic stem cells are derived from human embryos left over from IVF programs which have been donated for research by the couple for whom they were created.

The Australian government recognises the potential health benefits of stem cell therapies and has generously supported stem cell research by providing almost $100 million for the Australian Stem Cell Centre under the Backing Australia’s Ability program and a further $5.5 million under the Major National Research Facilities Program. Much of this funding is provided through the Australian Research Council and the Department of Education, Science and Training. In 2006 the National Health and Medical Research Council allocated around $40 million, or nine per cent, of its research budget to stem cell research. This year the government also announced an additional commitment of $22 million over four years to fund the National Adult Stem Cell Research Centre at Griffith University in Queensland.

During the 1990s, advances in in vitro fertilisation and related techniques highlighted the need for governments to responsibly address the ethical issues relating to human reproductive technologies and associated research. This government, the Australian government, was one of the first governments in the world to address these issues by passing two acts, the Research Involving Human Embryos Act 2002 and the Prohibition of Human Cloning Act 2002. In conjunction with complementary state legislation, these acts provide a nationally consistent framework governing this area of research and medicine.

The framework permits research using excess donated IVF embryos under a strict licensing framework overseen by the National Health and Medical Research Council. In addition to issuing licences, the committee examines and reviews research protocols relating to the use of embryonic and non-embryonic human stem cells. To date, the NHMRC has issued nine licences for projects to improve IVF technologies and stem cell research. Several human embryonic stem cell lines have been derived for medical research in Australia.

Global developments in stem cell research have proceeded on four fronts. The first is the discovery of better methods for growing and maintaining human embryonic stem cells in the laboratory. The second is advances in the methods to drive embryonic stem cells along particular pathways—for example, to develop into muscle, brain or pancreas cells. The third is the demonstration of the capabilities of human embryonic stem cells in at least five animal models of human disease. The fourth is the isolation of many new embryonic stem cell lines and the establishment of international collaborative stem cell banks and networks for sharing cell lines and techniques.

Researchers have improved the conditions in which embryonic stem cells are grown, and the type of cells into which they can grow. These advances are very important for the development of safe and effective embryonic stem cell based treatments for patients. Researchers have also been addressing major challenges around the generation of clinically acceptable human embryonic stem cells and the production of medically relevant tissue cells from human embryonic stem cells tested in animal systems.

Progress has also been made in using embryonic stem cell in cell based screening for new drugs, for toxicology assays, for identifying molecules involved in stem cell self-renewal and for differentiation into tissue cells. Within the last few weeks, University of New South Wales scientist Professor Bernie Tuch demonstrated that tumour formation can be prevented by encasing stem cells in microscopic capsules made from seaweed extract. Professor Tuch said that this would remove one of the major impediments to the therapeutic use of embryonic stem cells.

Significant challenges remain, and it may well be many years before the full potential of stem cell based therapies are realised. Nevertheless, these are exciting times in terms of the breadth and depth of human endeavour. I am proud that Australian researchers are making a major contribution to such groundbreaking research. The eminent members of the Lockhart review made their recommendations after careful consideration of the medical and ethical issues, and I respect the judgement and recommendations of these outstanding Australians.

The hopes of many injured and sick Australians and their families rest with stem cell researchers and, while we do not currently know whether that research will eventually deliver the ‘miracle’ that many hope for, I believe we should support the work of these researchers. It will be through their work that the scientific research of the 21st century will transform all of our lives. As in centuries past, science will again be the key to our success, our progress—as long as the world remains open, endlessly modifiable, unprejudiced. I cannot in all conscience stand in the way of the only ray of hope available to sufferers of devastating and debilitating disease and injury. In this instance, science, for me, has a moral authority as well as an intellectual authority. I support the bill.

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