Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 106:

“Safety of children - AHRRA

52. (1) The AHRRA shall not approve under section 51 a surrogacy agreement unless it is satisfied that the relevant person, and each other relevant person, does not present a potential significant risk of harm or neglect to—

(a) any child that may be born as a result of the AHR treatment the subject of the surrogacy agreement attached to the application, or

(b) any other child.

(2) (a) Subject to paragraph (b), the AHRRA shall, for the purposes of subsection (1), make a request in writing to each relevant person to complete and submit to the AHRRA within the period specified in the request (being a period reasonable in all the circumstances of the case), a return in the specified form (in this section referred to as a “section 52 return”) attached to the request.

(b) Subject to paragraph (c) and subsection (6), the Minister—

(i) shall, as soon as is practicable after the commencement of this subsection, by regulations specify the information, or information falling within a class of information specified in the regulations, that a section 52 return may require a relevant person, or a relevant person falling within a class of relevant persons specified in the regulations, to provide, and

(ii) may by regulations specify the circumstances (if any) in which such information may be further disclosed by the AHRRA in addition to further disclosures required by law.

(c) Where the Minister makes regulations under paragraph (b), he or she shall, in addition to having regard to the other provisions of this Act, have regard to the following:

(i) that, in determining the information to be specified, the paramount consideration is the safety of any child referred to in subsection (1);

(ii) that the information sought needs to be appropriate and proportionate to satisfying the AHRRA as referred to in subsection (1);

(iii) that any information sought which may reasonably be regarded as sensitive information is protected from any unnecessary further disclosure by the AHRRA except where such further disclosure is required by law.

(d) The AHRRA shall, in specifying different forms of section 52 returns, ensure that the forms are consistent with the regulations made under paragraph (b).

(3) Subject to subsection (4), where the AHRRA is not satisfied after having assessed the section 52 returns concerned, as referred to in subsection (1), it shall, as soon as is practicable after the expiration of the period concerned referred to in subsection(2)(a), by notice in the specified form (in this section referred to as a “section 52 notice”) given to each relevant person, state the reasons why the provider is not so satisfied.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (3), the AHRRA may also assess information obtained otherwise than from a relevant person.

(5) The AHRRA shall retain the original or a copy of—

(a) a section 52 return,

(b) a section 52 notice,

(c) information referred to in subsection (4) which is in writing, and

(d) any note made in writing, by the AHRRA, of information referred to in subsection (4) which is not in writing,

for not less than 30 years after receiving the return, issuing the notice, obtaining the information or making the note, as the case may be.

(6) On and after the establishment day, the Minister shall not make regulations under subsection (2) except after consultation with the AHRRA.

(7) In this section, “relevant person”, in relation to any child that may be born as a result of AHR treatment, means—

(a) in the case of two intending parents, each of the parents,

(b) in the case of a single intending parent, that parent and the parent’s spouse, civil partner or cohabitant (if any), and

(c) in the case of a surrogate mother, that mother and her spouse, civil partner or cohabitant (if any).”.