Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Catherine Byrne, to the House. It has been two and a half years since the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 was signed into law. This historic legislation gave parental rights to same sex couples across the State and truly embraced the notion that family formations are diverse, and there is no single proposition for Irish identify but only diversity.

Parts 2 and 3 of the Act provide for parentage through donor assisted human reproduction and as of December 2017, Parts 2 and 3 have yet to be commenced by the Minister for Health. Parental rights provide for an array of protections for a family - for example, allowing a parent to apply for an Irish passport and citizenship for their child; allowing a child to access his or her parents' estate, should they pass; and allowing a parent to make emergency health decisions on behalf of the child. I have received a number of emails from members of the public who are running into trouble in that regard, particularly in the area of passports. In response to a recent parliamentary question, the Minister for Health, Deputy Harris, indicated that the commencement of Parts 2 and 3 would be in place by "the end of the year.". In response to further parliamentary questions tabled by Deputy Louise O'Reilly, the answers omitted a timeline that was requested by us, suggesting that the Department is working to resolve a small number of technical issues involving the commencement of Parts 2 and 3. My first question is whether there is a timeline for the commencement of Parts 2 and 3 of the Child and Family Relationships Act? A significant number of families are experiencing legal uncertainty and are having their rights deferred. I think same sex couples and their families have waited long enough for the commencement of these Parts of the Act.