THE nurse in charge of organ donation at the Royal Bolton Hospital has said the Government are "wasting an opportunity" to help the hundreds of people on transplant waiting lists.

Donor Liaison Nurse Fiona Wilkinson said the new Human Tissue Bill currently going through Parliament should have included presumed consent for organ donation -- meaning people would have had to opt out rather than opt in.

At the moment a person has the chance to opt in by carrying a donor card. The family can also give permission after the person has died.

Mrs Wilkinson said: "It is really positive that the issue has brought about discussion and debate because it is raising the profile of donation issues and we need any opportunity for organ and tissue donation to be discussed.

"Consent on donation is really important, especially when dealing with a family. I think it would be very difficult to go against the wishes of a family because a person needs to be given opportunity to make an informed decision about donation. This issue has given families a good opportunity to discuss donation."

Chairman of Bolton Council's Health, Overview and Scrutiny Committee Cllr Andy Morgan said: "I would agree that it should be presumed about organ donation and would reflect what the BMA are saying. It has to be the best way forward to address the crisis we have of there not being enough donors.

"Saying that, Bolton have made great strides with donor card numbers increasing in vast numbers. The donor team have done really well but this would make their job easier and, more importantly, would bring more donors."

Bolton has seen a 700 per cent increase in organ donors in the last 12 months after the appointment of Ms Wilkinson.

Chairman of the BMA Ethics Committee, Dr Michael Wilks, said: "There is an increasing gap between the supply of organs for donation and the numbers of people requiring a transplant. A system of presumed consent could go some way to bridging this gap."

He said the BMA would still discuss the organ donation with the family before proceeding with the removal of the organs and their views would be taken into consideration.

The Bill was due to have its second reading in the House of Commons today.