A law regulating IVF and biotechnology is being drafted but no deadline has yet been set for its presentation in Parliament.

The Ministry for Justice and Home Affairs would only say that the law will "eventually" be presented in the House of Representatives.

"This is one of several initiatives being taken by the ministry," a spokesman said.

The news comes in the wake of a report in The Sunday Times on January 18 that Mater Dei Hospital has a fully-equipped IVF laboratory, which is not being used. The laboratory is also stocked with special cryopreservation containers normally used to freeze sperm, hospital sources confirmed.

In a one-sentence reply to a series of questions, a spokesman for the Parliamentary Secretary for Health had said that the "policy regarding IVF has still to be developed and direction for service development has to be given from higher political levels".

According to the hospital sources, the reply means that even though the state-of-the-art hospital has the capacity to provide IVF treatment, it will not be offered on the national health service unless Parliament enacts legislation to regulate the sector.

As yet, expensive IVF treatment for infertile couples is not offered on the national health service. Only one private hospital offers the treatment. The sector remains unregulated.

ksansone@timesofmalta.com