LEICESTER, United Kingdom – One of the world’s leading Catholic bioethics agencies is shutting down at the end of the month.

It was announced on Wednesday the Anscombe Bioethics Centre in Oxford is being closed by the Catholic Trust of England and Wales.

It was established n 1977 and is the oldest bioethical research institution in the United Kingdom. Archbishop Anthony Fisher of Sydney, Australia, called it “not just the premier Christian bioethics institute in Britain, but one of the finest in the world, Christian or secular.”

Professor David Albert Jones, the director of the Centre, said he took the news with “immense sadness.”

“It is the earnest hope of staff at the Centre that some means may be found to continue to make available the resources of that the Centre has generated, and also to continue the vital work of bioethical research and education that fully respects the dignity of the human person,” he said in a statement.

“Much of the focus of the work of the Centre over the past year has been the attempt in Scotland and in England and Wales to decriminalise ‘encouraging and assisting suicide’ in the case of people deemed to have a ‘terminal’ illness. Our work has been cited in Parliament and we have helped inform many people who are concerned about this issue,” Jones said.

“Despite the efforts of many people of good will, assisted suicide Bills continue to make progress both in Scotland and in England and Wales, albeit by narrow majorities. While the Centre will no longer be in a position to provide new resources, we urge people to make use of the resources we have already made available and to engage with the Scottish Parliament and with the House of Lords as these bodies continue to debate dangerous and ill-thought-out legislation,” he added.

One person closely tied to Anscombe Bioethics Centre said the decision “puts into jeopardy ongoing projects and collaborations.”

“Well, the Centre has been very active, particularly in the fight against assisted suicide. Not having the Centre anymore means the Church loses an important source of advocacy that is rooted in scholarship but able to speak to the wider public and to policymakers,” the former official told Crux, asking not to be identified.

On May 16, the newly elected Pope Leo XIV told diplomats that no one is exempted from “striving to ensure respect for the dignity of every person, especially the most frail and vulnerable, from the unborn to the elderly, from the sick to the unemployed, citizens and immigrants alike.”

He has also noted that changes in technology – especially the rise of Artificial Intelligence – is a major concern of the Catholic Church.

The Church in Britain is now losing one of its most major champions on these issues.

Follow Charles Collins on X: @CharlesinRome