Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

We are coming to the end of our meeting. I have a question regarding language. Since becoming a member of this committee, it has been a major learning exercise for myself and probably for the majority of the members. When it comes to language, I am nervous about saying something that could hurt even if completely unintentionally. Because we do not have the lived experience we do not know what certain words mean or the emphasis they have for our guests. They discussed the word "mother" earlier and how the language around that is important. Is there any other language they find hurtful or would like some clarity around? There is an element of public education in having them here today in order that people would have an understanding of surrogacy. Is there any other language they find particularly concerning, hurtful or discriminatory in its approach that they would like to tell us about?