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The church and society commission of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) is concerned about possible patenting of human genes. The group includes almost all mainstream Protestant, Anglican and Orthodox churches in Europe. They issued a statement regarding a 1998 piece of European legislation, called "the legal protection of biotechnological inventions," which they felt could be used as a loophole to the patenting of the human genome.
The patenting of human genes is one of the most controversial aspects of recent breakthroughs in biotechnology. While many companies argue that patent protection is essential to encourage investment in new genetic treatments, the CEC commission said that it opposed "any attempt to establish ownership of what must be regarded as a common good of all humanity."
It added: "Certainly, we positively welcome biotechnological progress and genetic engineering, but clearly this progress must benefit equitably the greatest number." Meanwhile, vast numbers of patents have been applied for in reference to genetic information. According to a news report by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), tens of thousands of applications have been filed in the United States alone in respect of full or partial genes. Thousands of patent applications have also been filed in Europe.
The CEC commission has written to Hubert Vedrine, the foreign minister of France, which currently holds the presidency of the EU, asking him "to propose the re-opening of the debate to extend it if possible to the global level, and to arrive at ethically acceptable proposals."
Central to the debate are the forces of corporate profit and voices of caution. In the past, the CEC expressed, "no objection to the patenting of a specific application using genetic information" but is opposed to "the patenting of a gene sequence as such, independent of a specific application."
The CEC is arguing for an independent ethics committee to be included in the equation as patents are considered and granted. Social considerations have to be given at least as much weight as corporate profit. 
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