PA
Roll up, roll up, buy a ticket and win, er, a baby.
Tickets for the world's first IVF lottery are to go on sale online in Britain later this month.
They will cost £20 each and the winner will get £25,000 of tailor-made fertility treatments at one of the country's top clinics.
The Gambling Commission has given a licence to the charity To Hatch to run the controversial lotto.
The draw will run every month, with an increase to fortnightly if successful, and is not just for couples - older would-be-parents, same sex couples and singletons can all play. The prize can be passed on to family or friends if not wanted by the winner.
Profits from the game will go back into To Hatch, which gives support and advice to childless couples and those with fertility problems.
Last month a damning report by MPs found that 73% of NHS trusts do not offer couples three courses of IVF, as advised by medical watchdog the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence.
The report warned that most trusts imposed strict rules on who is allowed treatment. Women are routinely turned down if they are deemed too young, too old or even if their husband has a child from a previous marriage.
Shockingly, five NHS trusts – Warrington, North Yorkshire and York, West Sussex, Stockport and North Staffordshire – do not offer IVF at all.
But critics said the game, which is set to launch on July 30, 'demeaned' the nature of human reproduction.
The game is not exclusively for couples. Single, gay and elderly players – who could pass the prize on to friends or family – will be allowed to take part.
Tickets could eventually be sold in newsagents nationwide, just like National Lottery tickets.
Winners will also be given accommodation in a luxury hotel and whisked by chauffeur driven car to the clinic for their treatment.
If standard IVF fails, they will be offered donor eggs, reproductive surgery or even a surrogate birth. They will also get a mobile phone so they can maintain contact with medics at all times.
Fertility doctors at each centre will use their clinical judgment to establish the feasibility of each possible pregnancy.
If a woman is fit but over 45 – the upper limit for UK NHS fertility treatment – they are likely to suggest donor eggs.
If a single woman or man wins, they will be provided with donor sperm or a surrogate mother and donor embryo.
Josephine Quintavalle, of ethical dilemma group Comment on Reproductive Ethics, said last night: 'This demeans the whole nature of human reproduction.
'Creation of human life should not be reduced to a public lottery. Instead of this, shouldn't more be spent on research into fertility problems?'
To Hatch founder Camille Strachan said many NHS trusts had axed IVF due to budget restrictions and thousands of couples could not afford the £5,000-a-time treatment.
She said: 'We will offer struggling couples a completely tailor made service. We hope the To Hatch Lottery can ease the burden on the NHS and reduce the stress slightly on some of those who are struggling.'
Around one couple in seven suffers from fertility problems, and 1 per cent of babies born every year in Britain were conceived via IVF.
What do you think? Would YOU buy a ticket? Or do you think it is totally wrong to offer such a prize?