The public consultation on the Human Fertilization and Embryology Act, which became law in 1990, will run until November and result in a government policy paper.

Ministers hope the exercise will reveal whether the legislation needs to be updated to reflect medical developments and ongoing ethical debates.

Gender Imbalance Concerns

One issue being examined is whether couples should be allowed to choose the gender of their babies for non-medical reasons. Critics are concerned that selection could lead to a gender imbalance, with some ethnic groups preferring to have sons rather than daughters.

The consultation also asks whether fertility clinics should probe the family structure the child will be brought up in.

Another key debate is whether embryos should be screened for diseases before they are implanted.

Currently doctors can screen for inherited diseases such as muscular dystrophy, and the consultation asks whether a wider array of illnesses should be screened.

Child Welfare

"The consultation raises many complex issues on which there are many different and strongly held views," said Public Health Minister Caroline Flint.

"There are important matters of reproductive freedom and responsibility, professional autonomy and how best to safeguard the welfare of the children."