Results 2,141-2,160 of 4,012 for speaker:Jennifer Whitmore

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: Apologies have been received from Deputy Murnane O'Connor and Senator Ruane. We will have two sessions today. The first session will consider the issues of preventing the sale, exploitation and trafficking of children born to an international surrogacy arrangement, and protecting the right of the child to his or her history and identity, including the child's genetic, gestational and social...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank Ms de Boer-Buquicchio for her contribution. She has to leave by 10.15 a.m. so I will invite members to ask questions but we will have to limit both the questions and answers to three and a half minutes. If there is any further time, we can have a second round. We will come to our guests from the Children's Rights Alliance for their opening statement after that.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: Yes, please.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: We will go around another time because we have to get to everyone. I think that we will have time to get back to the Senator, because a number of members are not present.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I will quickly ask a question. I was wondering about the rights of a child to identity. There is also a right to non-discrimination, including the right of non-discrimination of their parents. When we are talking about identity, how do we balance the right of a child to their identity with that of discrimination? We have discussed whether the name of a surrogate should be on a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: We will continue with a second round of questions. I invite Senator Seery Kearney to come back in.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: Okay. Even if those details are on the parental order and it is all collected elsewhere.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: Okay. I thank Ms de Boer-Buquicchio for coming in this morning. We have gained much from her expertise and her work in this area. I thank her very much for giving up her time. I know she has to go early. I thank her for her contribution.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: We will now move on to the Children's Rights Alliance. I call Ms Tanya ward to make her contribution.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: We will now move on to Senator Seery Kearney.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: That is an important conversation to have. I was also surprised by the previous contribution. There has to be a workaround that protects the right to privacy along with the right to identity.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I am giving Deputy Costello the look.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: It would be very difficult to control or enforce something like that if it were an international situation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I am going to refer to the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill and the fact that it only covers domestic surrogacies and not international ones. That Bill is going through the system. Have our guests any comments as to how they would feel if the Bill goes through without recognising international surrogacy?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank Ms de Boer-Buquicchio.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I thank Ms de Boer-Buquicchio very much. I will come in briefly because I want to clarify the question I raised earlier about the birth certificate and the balancing between the rights of a child to his or her identity and the rights to non-discrimination. Because surrogacy is one of those issues about which people hold passionate and often quite divergent views, there would be a risk that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: The Senator has three and a half minutes for this slot.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I agree; the status quois not acceptable on any level. It is an issue that needs to be addressed. I thank both witnesses for giving us their expertise and thoughts. We will suspend the meeting to allow our next witnesses come in.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on International Surrogacy: Preventing the Sale, Exploitation and Trafficking of Children: Discussion (19 May 2022)

Jennifer Whitmore: I welcome everyone to our second session, in which we will resume consideration of protecting the right of the child to his or her history and identity, including his or her genetic, gestational and social origins, and ensuring that existing children born through international surrogacy arrangements can exercise their right to their history and identity, including their genetic, gestational...