HEALTH Secretary Alan Milburn has outlined his vision for the future of genetic medicine - and strongly hinted that the region could play a vital role.

The Darlington MP chose the impressive backdrop of the £70m International Centre for Life, in Newcastle, to deliver his first major speech on the use of genetics in healthcare, yesterday.

On the day he opened the centre's Institute of Human Genetics, he announced that genetic tests for diseases such as cancer are to be made more widely available on the NHS, as part of a £30m Government investment.

The number of specialist consultants in genetics in England is to double in the next five years, and two new national laboratories dedicated to researching new treatments and tests for genetic disorders are to be established.

The Cancer Research Campaign has agreed to allow the NHS access to its cutting-edge research on the BRCA2 breast cancer gene, meaning latest breakthroughs will be available on the health service.

Mr Milburn said he was determined to lay to rest the "twin spectres" of human cloning and a genetics underclass caused by insurance firms discriminating against people with a genetic risk of certain diseases.

New laws to ban all forms of human cloning are to be introduced, and there is to be a moratorium on the use of genetic tests by insurance companies.

The Health Secretary gave details about the Government's intention to create a number of genetic knowledge parks, bringing together clinicians, scientists, academics and researchers on a single site.

"Where we have seen the development of a silicon valley in the past, we can now develop a genetics valley in the future," he added.

After the speech, Professor John Burn, head of clinical genetics at the Newcastle Centre, added: "We will definitely be pitching to become one of the new genetic knowledge parks.