Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 24 February (HL4885), whether the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority is required to maintain records regarding the size of embryos; if so, what is the mean, median and standard deviation for the diameter of (1) embryos transferred, (2) embryos stored for research, and (3) embryos allowed to perish; and if not, how providing a repeated reference to the size of an embryo has been considered to be relevant to the number of embryos destroyed when no such request for information regarding the size of embryos was previously made.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has advised that it is not required to maintain records regarding the size of embryos.

With regard to the size of the embryo, I refer the noble Lord to my answer of 24 February 2015 (HL4885).