Seanad debates

Thursday, 26 March 2015

Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage

 

10:30 am

Photo of David NorrisDavid Norris (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Senator Healy Eames's interrupting is pretty ignorant too, but I do not mind it. It suits me very well.

Single people can adopt at the moment. That is the law in this country. Single gay people can adopt at the moment. With regard to respect, I wonder how respectful it is to say, as one of the contributors said on the radio a couple of years ago when discussing civil marriage, that gay men wanted children as fashion accessories. I noted with interest Senator Mullen's reference to the fertility "industry" and the AHR "industry". That is fairly loaded language, I would have thought. One must be very careful about these things.

Senator Mullen speaks for the embryo and he speaks for children. I do not know who gave him this right. Then again, of course, he spoke for registrars, as did Senator Walsh. They spoke for registrars in the civil partnership case, even though the registrars had not asked them to do so and subsequently said they did not want them to. I wonder about this idea that they are the spokespersons for the embryos. I would say give the embryos a chance. Do not let the spokesperson for the embryo be Senator Mullen all the time.

With regard to these amendments, I understood, but I could be wrong - perhaps the Minister could indicate to me - that as a result of the legislation, a child will still have two parents. They may be the biological parents or they may not be, but I think I am right in saying that under this legislation a child will have two parents. That is the situation. The amendments are unnecessary and should be withdrawn. Good night and thank you very much.

Amendment No. 26 is astonishingly restrictive.

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