Seanad debates

Thursday, 26 March 2015

Children and Family Relationships Bill 2015: Committee Stage

 

10:30 am

Photo of Jim WalshJim Walsh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her clarification, which is helpful and informs the debate. I acknowledge there would be difficulties around the gathering of ongoing information. While, as provided for in amendment No. 24, a life-threatening condition might not arise too often in a person's life, such a crisis could trigger a need for a donor to inform their offspring. That does not interfere with the parents. This has nothing to do with parentage, rather it is about ensuring the best interests of the child born by way of donor-assisted human reproduction.

The Bill includes a requirement relating to updating of the register. As such, there is already an onus on the donor to provide information on an ongoing basis. I appreciate the point made by the Minister about a person faced with a life-threatening condition, about which the clinic is not informed, and how one would in that case pursue the child and so on. Placing an obligation on a donor to do so would address this. One would hope that, within all of this, there would be appropriate sanctions for people who do not comply with the law.

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