The Oviedo Convention, which was brought forward under the auspices of the Council of Europe, promotes the protection of human rights and the dignity of the human being with regard to the application of biology and medicine. Article 2 insists that the intent and welfare of the human being shall prevail over the sole interests of science or society. Due to the development of the cloning of animals, most notably of Dolly the sheep, an additional protocol on the prohibition of cloning of human beings was added almost five years ago. The Minister of State will no doubt be aware of the recent claims by Dr. Antinori, an Italian specialist in reproductive medicine, that three women are pregnant somewhere in the world with embryos cloned by him. Cloning involves the removal of the nucleus of a human egg cell, the insertion of a somatic cell nucleus and the electrical stimulation of this egg to cause cell division and the development of an embryo.