Baroness Mary Wornock, philosopher and IVF ethics pioneer died at age 94 on 20th March 2019. In 1984 she chaired an enquiry known as the Wornock Report, into human fertilisation and embryology following the birth of the world’s first IVF baby.
The Report highlighted the need for guidelines and limits to govern fertility treatment and human embryology research in the UK.
This led to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 and subsequently to the formation of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority(HFEA) in 1991.
It is the UK’s independent regulator of fertility treatment by setting standards, issuing licences, inspecting fertility clinics, and human embryo research.
She was the queen