Organ Tourism
Where it takes place, the purchase and sale of organs almost invariably leads to the exploitation of the organ donor. Existing legislation prevents commercial dealings in human material for transplantation in the UK, and overseas when a substantial part of the offence takes place in the UK. It also covers cases where a UK national arranges or facilitates the travel of the organ donor who is exploited in any part of the world. However, there was concern that legislation did not cover all scenarios in which a person from the UK might engage in the purchase and sale of organs, as there may be commercial dealings which involve UK nationals or residents but where no part of that dealing takes place here and where the UK national is not involved in the travel of the donor.
	Section 170 provides for the criminalisation of the purchase or sale of organs outside the United Kingdom by extending the jurisdiction of offences described in section 32(1) of the Human Tissue Act 2004 and section 20(1) of the Human Tissue (Scotland) Act 2006 when they relate to human organs. These offences cover the purchase of organs, the supply of organs in exchange for payment, and the initiation or negotiation of any such arrangement.
	The Human Tissue Act 2004 makes it a criminal offence to remove or store, for the purposes of transplantation, or to transplant, an organ without appropriate consent (section 5, read with section 1 and Schedule 1). It also makes it an offence to pay, or offer to pay, for an organ and to make arrangements for organ purchases (section 32(1)). Section 33 prohibits the removal and use of transplantable material from a living donor unless the requirements of regulations made under that section are met. These offences apply to those who carry out illicit removals and transplants (section 5) and those who make the arrangements for payment (section 32). They do not target the recipient of the transplanted material as such.
	For England and Wales, the Modern Slavery Act 2015 covers cases where a UK citizen arranges or facilitates the travel of the organ donor who is exploited, in any part of the world. Section 2 prohibits UK nationals from arranging or facilitating the travel of a donor, with a view to their being exploited (which includes the commission, by him or her or another person, of what would be an offence in this country under section 32 or 33 of the Human Tissue Act 2004), while knowing, or being in a position where they ought to have known, that another person is likely to exploit the donor. The Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015 and the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Criminal Justice and Support for Victims) (Northern Ireland) Act 2015 make similar provision for those territories.