In argument, much play is made of the fact that what is being killed are embryos left over from IVF, at the start anyhow. The Italian National Bioethics Commission said firmly that embryos are human beings and there is a moral duty to protect them regardless of how they were procreated. Francesco D'Agostino, president of the commission, also added: "the other reason is of the pragmatic order; if permission were given for the use of spare embryos, there would be a risk of endorsing a fraud, namely the creation of embryos for their reproductive use, but, in fact destined for research."