MPs will vote soon on a new gene therapy to stop incurable diseases passing to babies – ending fears the Government is ducking the controversy.

The health minister threw her weight behind a DNA-altering procedure pioneered by a team at Newcastle University, saying: “This is something I want to take forward.”

Jane Ellison told a parliamentary inquiry: “I am now actively seeking cross-Government approval for parliamentary time in this session to bring regulations before the House.

“I’m extremely conscious that there are real families waiting on progress on this work. We need to keep up the momentum.”

The comments are a huge boost to the Newcastle team, which has called for legislation as soon as possible, because of the number of patients waiting for treatment.

Also appearing before the Commons science select committee, the team’s Professor Doug Turnbull said the worst-affected babies died within “24 or 48 hours”.

He said most diseases develop in childhood, or adolescence, adding: “We can do a lot to help with epilepsy and diabetes, but there is no cure.”

And, on the gene therapy, “This sort of approach – to try to present a transmission of these sorts of diseases - would be really important.”

The treatment involves replacing faulty mitochondria responsible for inherited diseases, including muscle wasting, heart problems, vision loss, organ failure and epilepsy.

Embryos are given healthy DNA from donor eggs, meaning a baby has the DNA of three people – from two parents, plus less than one per cent from the donor.

If legalised, the UK would become the first place in the world to allow children with three people's DNA to be born, although other countries have shown interest.

Yesterday (Wednesday, October 22), Mrs Ellison could not confirm a vote will take place before May’s general election – but her comments mean No.10 would effectively have to block it

Only last month – as The Northern Echo revealed – the department of health (DH) refused to say the regulations would come forward before May.

A 20-strong group of, mainly Conservative, MPs had demanded “more research”, some claiming scientists are seeking the ability to “create children”.

Mrs Ellison also said three reviews by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) had cleared the procedure on safety grounds.

And she suggested some MPs who opposed mitochondria replacement on principle were hiding behind arguments about safety.

A ‘yes’ vote would clear the way for Newcastle University’s Wellcome Trust Centre for Mitochondrial Research to apply for a licence to the HFEA, sometime next year.

Last month, North-East MPs urged ministers to press the accelerator, pointing to calls from the North-East England Stem Cell Institute to act on “cruel” disorders.