Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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205. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 604 of 27 September 2016, notwithstanding the genuine reasons for the necessity for a lead in period for Parts 2 and 3 of the Act, his views on whether the delay and failure to publish a timeframe for commencement is having a negative impact on couples who are currently expecting children; the preparatory work being carried out by his Department in respect of these sections of the Bill; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29072/16]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As stated in my answer to the Deputy’s previous question on this matter, Parliamentary Question Number 604 of 27 September 2016, it was agreed that a transition period would be required between the enactment of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 and the commencement of Parts 2 and 3 of that Act. The advent of this transition period was to help to facilitate the switch to the new regulatory framework, which involves non-anonymous gamete and embryo donation for use in donor-assisted human reproduction (DAHR) procedures.

The introduction of non-anonymous gamete and embryo donation, through the provisions of Parts 2 and 3 of the Act, is in recognition of Ireland's obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which states that a child has a right to know his or her genetic identity. In order to uphold these rights, through the commencement of Parts 2 and 3 of the Act, it is first necessary for specific preparatory work to be undertaken, for instance, in relation to the establishment and operation of the National Donor-Conceived Person Register and in the preparation of regulations on a range of matters pertaining to DAHR procedures.

An inherent consequence of the transition period is that it defers when the provisions in the Act relating to parentage following DAHR procedures come into force. However, the Act includes specific provisions that deal with the parentage of children who were born as a result of a DAHR procedure before the legislation has commenced.