Strategies of regulation: illustrations from the work of the Human Genetics Commission

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Description/Abstract

This piece reflects on factors that affect the selection of regulatory options in the context of the work of a UK body that was not a ‘regulator’ in the sense of formally overseeing the activity of others. The Human Genetics Commission (HGC) did not directly wield legal power, but it had a recognised place in UK bioethical governance. It instigated legal interventions, such as the crime of DNA theft under the Human Tissue Act 2004. However, in other pieces of work different modes of regulation have emerged. It is necessary to consider the type of normative intervention that is ultimately most likely to promote the activities and behaviours that have been identified as desirable. Such regulatory strategies are sometimes obscured by the more explicit consideration of substantive issues in the final published reports. This piece considers how choices have been made about which options to pursue