Canada. Royal Commission on New Reproductive Technologies : The Royal Commission on Reproductive Technologies was established in 1989 (P.C. 2150, 25 October 1989), appointed under Part I of the Inquiries Act. Subsequent Orders in Council relating to the Commission are: P.C. 2420, 7 December 1989; P.C. 1801, 28 August 1990; P.C. 104, 17 January 1991; P.C. 524, 21 March 1991; and P.C. 2539, 16 December 1991.
The commissioners were Patricia Baird, Chairperson; C. Bruce Hatfield, Martin Hébert, Grace Jantzen, Maureen McTeer, Suzanne Rozell Scorson and Louise Vandelac. Two members were added later: Bartha Maria Knoppers and Susan E.M. McCutcheon (P.C. 1801, 28 August 1990). The appointment of the following commissioners was terminated in 1991: C. Bruce Hatfield, Martin Hébert, Maureen McTeer and Louise Vandelac (P.C. 2539, 16 December 1991). The secretary was John Sinclair.
Although the debate about new reproductive technologies dated from a decade or more earlier, by the end of the 1980s the time had clearly come for more exhaustive public information and discussion on new reproductive technologies and their implications for Canadian society. Calls for public discussion and recommendations for policy development came from many sources including women's groups, religious groups, legal and medical groups, federal-provincial working groups, academic organizations and organizations of people with disabilities, as well as in forums such as in conferences on new reproductive technologies. Some of these organizations formed a coalition to advocate for the appointment of a royal commission; others supported the idea as a constructive way to deal with these complex issues.
In response to these developments, on 3 April 1989, the Government of Canada announced its plan to establish a Royal Commission on New Reproductive Technologies in the Speech from the Throne and appointed one about six months later. Specifically, the Throne Speech expressed concern over the various reproductive technologies available and how to cope with them. "Advances in medical and biological science have created in Canada, as in other countries, a variety of new reproductive technologies: artificial insemination, in vitro fertilization, embryo transfer and surrogate parenting. There is a concern that these scientific advances will outpace societies ability to deal with their moral, ethical, legal and social implications."
According to the Order in Council under which the inquiry was established, the mandate of the commission was to inquire into and report on current and potential medical and scientific developments related to new reproductive technologies, considering in particular their social, ethical, health, research, legal and economic implications and the public interest, recommending what policies and safeguards should be applied. The report of the royal commission was published in 1993 (Proceed With Care, Final Report of the Royal Commission on New Reproductive Technologies, Ottawa, 1993, 2 vols.)
