Ms Paula Fagan:

They had very much in common. Some people had a slightly easier time registering their child.

Same-sex couples cannot be registered with both parents on the birth certificate at present. That still has not been commenced. For some couples who went to the Civil Registration Service on Lombard Street to register the birth, it was possible to use a double-barrelled surname but down the country, registrars were not used to that. Generally, there is a significant lack of information. Once a same-sex couple engages with any State service, they are meeting a lot of barriers because the civil servants are not equipped or do not have the knowledge to deal with them. That can be very difficult. I was speaking to a family the other day. The parents went in to register their child but could not register both parents, even though they are a married couple. They were watching an opposite-sex couple who had quite a complex situation, although I cannot remember the details. The registrar was able to work with the opposite-sex couple and get both parents registered. Post-marriage equality, same-sex couples do not know a lot of these details, either. They are going ahead and having children. Clinics are open to them. They find all this out retrospectively. It is a real issue. The work we are trying to do is to inform people that regulations are not in place yet. Countrywide, there is not much difference in the experience.