Thug wins right to IVF in prison – as law-abiding couples lose out
A VIOLENT criminal was granted fertility treatment inside prison – while many childless couples are denied IVF because of cutbacks.
The inmate, who was convicted of a serious assault, had his request approved last year by then prisons minister Sam Gyimah.
It is thought the treatment, which can cost up to £2,000, was paid for by the NHS.
Healthcare rationing watchdogs say women under the age of 40 can have three free cycles of IVF if they have been trying to conceive for two years. But an audit for campaign group Fertility Matters found 87 per cent of clinical commissioning groups in many parts of the UK missed this target.
The prisoner, who could become a father behind bars if the treatment is successful, made his case under article 8 of the Human Rights Act – the right to a family life.
Tory MP David Davies said the decision was ludicrous, adding: ‘This is an insult to law-abiding families who are unable to obtain IVF. This is yet another example of the crazy Human Rights Act which ought to be radically changed or got rid of.’
Although no prisoners held in Scottish jails have yet tried to access fertility treatment, the Scottish Prison Service is also bound by article 8 of the Human Rights Act.
The latest case is one of only a handful of applications for fertility treatment that have been approved for a criminal serving a sentence south of the Border. In 2007, murderer Kirk Dickson won the right to father a child from behind bars using artificial insemination after he appealed to the European Court of Human Rights. As a result of that precedent a minister signed off fertility treatment for another inmate four years later – sparking a public backlash.
Limited details of the latest case were released to the Daily Mail following a Freedom of Information request. Mr Gyimah approved the IVF application last February.
He later moved to become higher education minister but quit the Government last month calling the Brexit agreement ‘naive’ and demanding a second referendum.
Initially, Westminster’s Ministry of Justice refused to give details, saying releasing the data could result in the prisoner being identified in breach of their privacy. However, the information was released following an appeal.
The Ministry of Justice said five inmates made requests for access to IVF in 2015, two were rejected and three cases were ‘discontinued’. The following year, seven prisoners applied, four were rejected and three withdrew.
Last year six applied, two had their cases rejected, three applications were discontinued and one was approved. Four requests have been made this year, two of which have been rejected.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: ‘The small number of prisoners requesting access to IVF are subject to a strict assessment – including the risk they pose and their relationship with their partner – and permission is given extremely rarely. All additional costs for facilitating the treatment are met by the prisoner.’
Dickson met his wife Lorraine through a prison pen pal scheme while she was serving 12 months for benefit fraud. The couple were awarded £18,000 in damages after the 2007 ruling that their rights had been breached.
‘Subject to a strict assessment’