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Wales will become the first UK country to bring in an opt-out system for organ donation.

An advertising campaign is now in full swing on TV, radio, online and public transport.

The message is simple – it is time to talk about organ donation – to decide whether you want to be an organ donor and, crucially, to tell your nearest and dearest what you decide.

The new system, known as soft opt-out, changes the emphasis of donation completely so that unless you formally opt out – register a decision not to be an organ donor in the event of your death – it will be assumed you consent.

People can also formally opt in and register their decision to be a donor.

Doing nothing means from December 1 residents may still become a donor as their consent will be deemed to have been given.

Opponents claim an opt-out system gives the state too much control over people’s bodies, could cause extra distress for bereaved families and may put medical staff in a difficult position.

There is also concern that the infrastructure may not be in place in Wales to make use of more organs and some suggest adverse publicity about the scheme could lead to a backlash and a drop in the number available.

But the British Humanist Association has been campaigning for a decade to bring in an opt-out system across the whole of the UK.

Andrew Copson, the association’s chief executive, said: “People are dying and suffering unnecessarily because of low numbers of organs donated.

"By switching to an opt-out system, we cannot only save countless lives but end the black market for organ trafficking.

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“Religious objections for ‘respect for the dead’ are one thing, and people who have them will have their wishes respected, but saving lives in the here and now has to come first.

“We would want the next Government to move to a presumed consent system as soon as possible after the election.”

Steve Gazzard, 66, of Exmouth, Devon, has been campaigning for the opt-out scheme. His daughter Sarah Wright, 36, died in 2012 while waiting for a double lung transplant.

He said: “My daughter donated her organs and it helps me to know that her death wasn’t in vain. People lead such busy lives.

"The biggest advantage of an opt-out system is that people don’t have to do anything. For those who don’t want to go down that route can fill a form in.”

Clare Bolitho, of Albrighton, Shropshire, donated her kidney to a stranger in 2011.

The 63-year-old is also in favour of the system: “Of course we should have an opt-out scheme. What can be wrong with it? What are the cons of giving someone their life?”