Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for its policies on organ donation of data shown on page 53 of the Welsh Government’s Evaluation of the Human Transplantation (Wales) Act, published on 30 November 2017, showing that rates of donation among Welsh resident donors have fallen since the change in the law in that country.

A consultation impact assessment has been published as part of the Government’s public consultation. This suggests that, when introduced as part of a wider communication and logistical package, opt out systems of consent can be associated with higher donation rates. Important evidence continues to become available from the Welsh Government on impact of the Human Transplantation (Wales) Act 2013, including that a longer period of time is needed to draw firmer conclusions on the impact of the change in the law. The Department invites further evidence to be submitted on factors not considered in the consultation analysis. These will be carefully considered before the Government’s final response to the consultation.