PET PET
  • My Account
  • Subscribe
Become a Friend Donate
  • About Us
    • People
    • Press Office
    • Our History
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Friend of PET
    • Volunteer
    • Campaigns
    • Writing Scheme
    • Partnership and Sponsorship
    • Advertise with Us
  • Donate
    • Become a Friend of PET
  • BioNews
    • News
    • Comment
    • Reviews
    • Elsewhere
    • Topics
    • Glossary
    • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Previous Events
  • Engagement
    • Policy and Projects
      • Resources
    • Education
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
    • People
    • Press Office
    • Our History
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Friend of PET
    • Volunteer
    • Campaigns
    • Writing Scheme
    • Partnership and Sponsorship
    • Advertise with Us
  • Donate
    • Become a Friend of PET
  • BioNews
    • News
    • Comment
    • Reviews
    • Elsewhere
    • Topics
    • Glossary
    • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Previous Events
  • Engagement
    • Policy and Projects
      • Resources
    • Education
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us
  • My Account
  • Subscribe
  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements
PETBioNewsReviewsTV Review: HARDtalk - Professor Robert Winston

BioNews

TV Review: HARDtalk - Professor Robert Winston

Published 16 March 2015 posted in Reviews and appears in BioNews 794

Author

Simon Hazelwood-Smith

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.

This interview started badly for Professor Robert Winston. Within the first four minutes he had branded the concerns of opponents to mitochondrial donation 'trivial', and almost immediately after denied that he had done so...

This interview started badly for Professor Robert Winston.
Within the first four minutes he had branded the concerns of
opponents to mitochondrial donation 'trivial', and almost immediately after
denied that he had done so. However, though Professor Winston occasionally returned
to this condescending register, the points he made following his early slip-up were
far more convincing.

Much of the conversation focused on points and phrases that,
to those who have been following the debate over the past few years, have
become familiar. Changing cell's batteries, slippery slopes and steps in the
dark were all present.

On the whole Professor Winston performed well. When
challenged on the morality of the procedure, for example, he flipped the
question on its head, saying that it is 'our moral obligation to see if we can
alleviate suffering'. Again, on the question of the genetic intervention being
passed down the generations, Winston used this tactic: 'If you can cure the
disease in future generations, isn't that a good thing? Or would you rather see
that disease reoccurring?'

The programme was broadcast soon after the House of Lords'
vote on mitochondrial donation (see BioNews 792). Host
Zeinab Badawi regularly acted as the opposition to Professor Winston's pro
position. And, although Badawi stated that she did not hold the opinions she
challenged Winston with, she did regularly interrupt him. At times this seemed
to inhibit his ability to fully express and explain his position, and was
somewhat frustrating to hear.

Despite this I was largely impressed by his responses. He
defended his comments that taking mitochondrial transfer was 'a step in the
dark' with the retort that all new medical procedures have a level of
uncertainty about their effects. Given current knowledge, though, the risk is
worth taking.

He highlighted the likely small number of preliminary patients
who will be monitored, and that the procedure will only be permitted on a
case-by-case basis, with informed consent after careful selection.

The interview then took an unexpected left turn when Badawi
questioned Professor Winston on his attitude towards assisted dying. He is
against a change in the law, citing fears of pressurising the vulnerable and
elderly into ending their lives. However he did not vote against the Assisted Dying Bill, but abstained, for which he provides thought provoking reasoning. An
orthodox Jew, Professor Winston feels that his faith dictates his position on
the law and as such he should not impose his personal religious opinion on a
democratic process.

He feels this approach should extend to mitochondrial
transfer: 'If you are a Catholic, you should consider not having treatment, but
why would you impose these beliefs on others in a pluralistic society?'

Still, most of the interview covered well-trodden ground,
and is unlikely to have made any listener switch sides. I also found that occasionally,
Professor Winston attempted dismiss dissenting views by simply asserting his
position as an expert, an ill-judged move. For example, there is certainly a
debate to be had on the extent to which genetics
influence behaviour, yet he closed it down boldly stating that nature is
far more important than nurture. That was that.

Happily, more often Professor Winston presented rational
and calm arguments, which showed the careful deliberative process leading to
legalisation in a good light, as well as reflecting the cautious manner in
which the first mitochondrial donation treatments will proceed. Perhaps soon we
can leave the 'slippery slopes' behind.

Related Articles

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
Reviews
25 January 2016 • 3 minutes read

Book Review: The Essential Fertility Guide

by Dr Nicoletta Charolidi

For couples who have difficulty in conceiving naturally, this is an excellent guide by Professor Robert Winston on the main causes of infertility...

Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the output from a DNA sequencing machine.
CC BY 4.0
Image by Peter Artymiuk via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts the shadow of a DNA double helix, on a background that shows the fluorescent banding of the sequencing output from an automated DNA sequencing machine.
News
25 February 2015 • 2 minutes read

House of Lords gives green light to mitochondrial donation

by Sandy Starr

The House of Lords has voted by 280 to 48 to pass regulations permitting mitochondrial donation. This makes the UK the first country in the world to legislate for the use of mitochondrial donation techniques in treatment...

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
Comment
19 January 2015 • 6 minutes read

The real cost of infertility?

by Dr Kirsty Horsey

The fourth and final session of the Progress Educational Trust's (PET) annual conference was a single speaker session: Professor Lord Robert Winston, who was introduced and chaired by Jeremy Laurance...

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
4 August 2014 • 3 minutes read

Government is misleading public about mitochondrial donation, claim scientists

by Siobhan Chan

The UK Government has been accused of deliberately misleading the public in order to win approval over its plans to implement mitochondrial replacement techniques in IVF...

Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
CC0 1.0
Image by Alan Handyside via the Wellcome Collection. Depicts a human egg soon after fertilisation, with the two parental pronuclei clearly visible.
News
9 May 2014 • 3 minutes read

Lord Winston says IVF could 'threaten our humanity'

by Chee Hoe Low

The advancement of IVF techniques could 'threaten our humanity' if it enables the rich to pay for designer babies, said Professor Lord Robert Winston, a pioneer of the fertility treatment...

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

« Event Review: Does egg-freezing enable women to 'have it all'?

Data-Label The UK's Leading Supplier Of Medical Labels & Asset Labels

RetiringDentist.co.uk The UK's Leading M&A Company.
easyfundraising
amazon

This month in BioNews

  • Recent
27 June 2022 • 4 minutes read

Podcast Review: Genetics Unzipped – Have a heart, the science of xenotransplantation

20 June 2022 • 5 minutes read

Documentary Review: Our Father

20 June 2022 • 4 minutes read

Podcast Review: How Far Could Genome Editing Go?

13 June 2022 • 3 minutes read

Podcast Review: Happy Mum Happy Baby – Tom Daley

13 June 2022 • 3 minutes read

Podcast Review: The Outlook – The shocking truth about my three dads

Subscribe to BioNews and other PET updates for free.

Subscribe
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
Wellcome
Website redevelopment supported by Wellcome.

Website by Impact Media Impact Media

  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements

© 1992 - 2022 Progress Educational Trust. All rights reserved.

Limited company registered in England and Wales no 07405980 • Registered charity no 1139856

Subscribe to BioNews and other PET updates for free.

Subscribe
PET PET

PET is an independent charity that improves choices for people affected by infertility and genetic conditions.

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • RSS
Wellcome
Website redevelopment supported by Wellcome.

Navigation

  • About Us
  • Get Involved
  • Donate
  • BioNews
  • Events
  • Engagement
  • Jobs & Opportunities
  • Contact Us

BioNews

  • News
  • Comment
  • Reviews
  • Elsewhere
  • Topics
  • Glossary
  • Newsletters

Other

  • My Account
  • Subscribe

Website by Impact Media Impact Media

  • Privacy Statement
  • Advertising Policy
  • Thanks and Acknowledgements

© 1992 - 2022 Progress Educational Trust. All rights reserved.

Limited company registered in England and Wales no 07405980 • Registered charity no 1139856