Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as teacht isteach inniu.

Obviously we are all ad idemon the Bill. I thank the Minister for bringing it so promptly to the House. It will resolve difficulty experienced by many donors in the LGBT community in assisted human reproduction cases. It extends the registration of a birth to include "parent" on a birth certificate. At present birth certificates issued in respect of children conceived through donor assistance born to same-sex couples only allow for the recording of the mother's details. As a consequence only the woman who gives birth to a baby can register as a parent on the child's birth certificate. These changes will facilitate the registrations and re-registrations of births of children of same-sex female couples. In addition to the current labels of mother and father on birth certificates, parents of children not conceived through donor assistance may avail of the label of "parent" should they so request.

Fianna Fáil welcomes that progress is finally being made to address issues being experienced by same-sex female parents. We are aware that other legislation is required if we are to be considered a truly inclusive society. It is essential that our laws reflect diverse family types in Ireland and that legal certainty is given to parents and children in such circumstances. We have discussed how families are changing.

I believe the heads of the assisted reproduction Bill curtail the rights of parents who would like to have a child through surrogacy. We need a proper debate on the matter. We are very restricted in our view of surrogacy at the moment. The legislation being tabled is even more restrictive and does not serve the needs of families, straight couples and same-sex couples. When a family goes down the road of surrogacy there are many difficulties in registering the parentage. The legislation we are contemplating makes this even more difficult. I do not know if this falls within the remit of the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, but there is an overlap in the registration part. We need a wider debate on the matter.