Rónán Mullen (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I realise this is very difficult and the Bill runs to almost 200 pages. This is why we really should have a separate Report Stage. If the Minister were to come back with something on this that would make me want to table a specific amendment on Report Stage, by passing such an amendment now, we are not likely to get to a Report Stage or certainly will not be in a position to table an amendment.

To be of assistance to the Minister, I am happy to spell out my concern. I apologise if I imagine things wrongly. I understand the purpose of this is that if one of the intending parents dies, or the intending parent in the case of a single person being permitted to have a surrogacy, there is no surrogacy arrangement any more. I do not know how all this works in practice. Am I correct in thinking that means there could be a time lag between the time when the embryo is brought into being and the time when it is implanted into the surrogate mother? If within that time period one of the intending parents were to die, what would then happen to the embryo? I suspect it is a real-world question unless the embryo transfer is immediately upon the creation of the human embryo, in which case it is not realistic to posit that there could be a moment in between the creation of the embryo and its transfer when the person dies. That is where I am dependent on those who know more than I do to tell me what the real-world effect of this amendment would be.

I also realise that in the case of a single intending parent, there is nobody to take responsibility for that embryo at the end of the pregnancy. If there are two intending parents, one could take responsibility at the end of the pregnancy. I would appreciate assistance on that question.