Britain could be forced to look to Commonwealth countries like Nigeria for sperm donations if Brexit goes ahead

BRITAIN may be forced to go to Commonwealth countries like Nigeria in search of sperm donations if the country finally leaves the European Union (EU) because exiting the community will negate an existing agreement that furnishes the country with supplies.

Under the existing EU agreement, Britain's national sperm bank is supplied from across the continent and couples looking to conceive through artificial insemination have benefitted from it immensely. However, if Brexit goes ahead and Britain leaves the EU, such sperm would no longer be imported into the country from across the community.

Britain imported around 3,000 sperm samples from Cyros, a commercial sperm bank in Denmark last year, as well as around 4,000 samples from the US. Sperm donations in Britain have fallen sharply since donors lost the right to anonymity under a law that came into force in 2005.

Apart from sperm, Britain also imports a small number of eggs and embryos from other EU countries, amounting to around 500 last year. If Brexit talks collapse, the government said the laws currently governing sperm imports, the EU Organ Directives and EU Tissues and Cells Directives, would no longer apply to Britain.

According to the British government, under a new arrangement, fertility banks would need new written agreements with relevant EU establishments. UK licensed establishments that already hold licences to import tissues and cells from third countries will be able to use their existing written agreements with third country organisations as a template, however.

Geetha Venkat, the director of London's Harley Street Fertility Clinic, said British couples were already panicking at the development. She added that a legislative change on US sperm imports meant these could take up to three months, compared with imports from Denmark that currently only take a week.

In addition, extra paperwork could create additional costs which could be passed on to couples, Dr Venkat warned. She added that as it is, artificial insemination is a stressful treatment and this is going to add to that.