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20 December 2006

It was announced today (20 December 2006) that Shirley Harrison will be appointed as Chair of both the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) and Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA). This appointment will take effect from 1 January 2007. Shirley Harrison will oversee the work of both Authorities separately until – pending legislation – the new Regulatory Authority for Tissue and Embryos (RATE) is established. RATE will combine the statutory functions that are currently the responsibility of the HTA and HFEA.

Caroline Flint, Minister of State for Public Health said "I am delighted that Shirley Harrison has agreed to accept the chairmanship of both the HTA and HFEA. I have no doubt that Shirley will have the confidence of both boards and the respect of key stakeholders working in the field and will do much to develop joint working across the two organisations ahead of the proposed establishment of RATE when the functions of the two organisations will come together formally."

Shirley Harrison said "I am very pleased to have been appointed to these posts. My aim is to ensure that the HTA and the HFEA maintain the confidence of their sectors and the public."

Adrian McNeil, Chief Executive of the HTA said: "I am delighted with this appointment. I look forward to continuing to work with Shirley to promote best practice across the sectors regulated by the HTA." 

Angela McNab, Chief Executive of the HFEA, said: "We have enjoyed working with Shirley in her position as interim Chair of the HTA and are delighted to have her as the new Chair of the HFEA and HTA.

"The HFEA and the HTA have been working closely together for some time and Shirley's appointment will bring us even closer and make our joint working more seamless.

"Her appointment is also an important step towards an integrated system of regulation for organs, tissues, gametes, embryos and blood which has been proposed by Government with the formation of RATE. This is a sensible and logical step for our sectors and Shirley's leadership will be invaluable in helping bring this to fruition."

Ends

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Notes to editors

• Shirley Harrison was appointed for three years from 1 January 2007 by the Appointments Commission. All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees' political activity (if any declared) to be made public. Shirley Harrison has declared no current political activity. She has three current Ministerial appointments: Magistrate (Department of Constitutional Affairs), Chair of the South Yorkshire Probation Board (Home Office; appointment until 31 March 2007), and Member of the South Yorkshire Courts Board (Department of Constitutional Affairs; appointment until 31 March 2007). The appointment has been made in accordance with the OCPA Code of Practice.
  
  She will receive remuneration of £60,000 p/a and will work 3 days per week across both organisations.
• The HTA and HFEA are Executive Non-Departmental Public Bodies of the Department of Health. The HTA and HFEA are both Competent Authorities responsible for the EU Tissue and Cells Directive, which will be fully implemented in 2007.
  
  As Chair of the HTA and HFEA, Shirley will carry out all the legal functions of the position under the Human Tissue Act 2004 and Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, respectively.
• Biography
  Shirley Harrison is a magistrate and chairs the South Yorkshire Probation Board. She acts as a patient representative in the field of cancer research, with particular interests in translational research and genetics. Her professional career has been in marketing and public relations as a practitioner, an academic and an author. She has been a member of the HTA since 2005 and took up her position as interim Chair in October 2006.
• HTA
  The HTA was established on 1 April 2005 to regulate the removal, storage, use and disposal of human bodies, organs and tissue for a number of 'Scheduled Purposes' – such as research, transplantation, and education and training - set out in the HT Act.
  
  The HT Act covers England, Wales and Northern Ireland. There is separate legislation in Scotland – the Human Tissue (Scotland) Act 2006 – and the HTA performs certain tasks on behalf of the Scottish Executive (approval of living donation of organs and licensing of establishments storing tissue for human application).
  
  As the regulator under the HT Act, the HTA is responsible for licensing a number of activities and carrying out inspections to ensure licence conditions are being met. These licensable activities include:
  • Anatomical examination
  • Post mortem examination
  • Removal of material from the deceased in certain circumstances
  • Storage of post mortem material
  • Storage of anatomical specimens
  • Storage of material for other purposes - e.g. for human application (transplantation) or research
  • Public display of a body or material from a deceased person.
    
    Establishments storing tissue for human application are regulated under the EUTCD and required a licence from 7 April 2006.  All other activities required a licence from 1 September 2006.
• HFEA
  The HFEA is the independent regulator for IVF treatment and embryo research. Our role is to protect patients and the public interest, to drive improvement in the treatment and research sectors and to provide information to the public and policymakers about treatment and research.
  
  The HFEA was set up in August 1991 as part of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990. The HFEA's principal tasks are to license and monitor clinics that carry out in vitro fertilisation (IVF), donor insemination (DI) and human embryo research. The HFEA also regulates the storage of gametes (eggs and sperm) and embryos.
• RATE
  As well as replacing the HTA and the HFEA in regulating all functions relating to the whole range of human tissue – blood, organs, tissues, cells, gametes and embryos, RATE would also take over from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) the responsibility for the regulation of the donation, procurement and supply of blood and blood products. In this way, RATE would become the single Competent Authority under the EU Blood and Tissue and Cells Directives, the purpose of which is to secure the safety and quality of blood and tissue and cells used for transplantation, and the sole body responsible for regulatory oversight of activities relating to the use of human bodily material. The appointment of the new Chair of the HTA and HFEA does not pre-empt any later appointment process for the Chair of RATE.
  
  The Queen's speech set out the legislative programme for 2006/2007 and the White paper was published on 14 December 2006.
  
  This will be followed by a Draft Bill. The Government's aim is to create a new Authority - the Regulatory Authority for Tissues (RATE) - which will combine the functions of the HTA and HFEA. Subject to there being a Bill in the 2007/2008 session, it might be anticipated that RATE would be established in 2009. As well the establishment of RATE, the White Paper proposes an overhaul of the 1990 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act. In the interim, the HTA and HFEA are working with the Department of Health and others in the move towards RATE.

For further enquiries, please contact the HFEA press office.

Page last updated: 11 March 2009

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