Government advisers in Britain have launched a public consultation process to tease out the acceptable uses of new cloning techniques.

The consultation document, prepared jointly by the Human Genetic Advisory Commission and the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, draws a clear distinction between reproductive cloning (that is, creating genetically identical human beings) and “therapeutic” cloning, whereby early embryos could be created to develop new treatments or to further scientific knowledge.

Under the 1990 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act, the creation of cloned babies is forbidden in Britain and carries a criminal sentence. But …