Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government how many human eggs (oocytes) were harvested and frozen by vitrification between the years 2014–24 for social purposes according to records kept by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority; and how many of these eggs were subsequently thawed in order to undertake clinical treatment using in vitro fertilisation.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority does not hold information on the method of freezing for the whole period requested, or the reasons eggs were frozen.

Data is available from 2014 to 2023 showing 263,692 eggs collected for patients’ own use in egg storage and 33,861 eggs thawed for patients’ own use.