Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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334. To ask the Minister for Health the legislative provisions in place in the area of surrogacy here. [46616/18]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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At present, there are no specific legislative provisions dealing with surrogacy in Ireland. However, as you will be aware, the Government approved the drafting of a Bill on assisted human reproduction (AHR) and associated areas of research in October last year, which includes provisions for surrogacy.

The specific provisions relating to surrogacy are outlined in Part 6 of the General Scheme of the Assisted Human Reproduction Bill 2017. These provisions outline the specific conditions under which surrogacy in Ireland will be permitted, including a requirement for all surrogacy agreements to be pre-authorised by the AHR Regulatory Authority. The Scheme also sets out a court-based mechanism through which the parentage of a child born through surrogacy may be transferred from the surrogate (and her husband, if applicable) to the intending parent(s).

The General Scheme is published on my Department’s website. The Joint Committee on Health is currently conducting a review of the General Scheme of the Assisted Human Reproduction Bill 2017 as part of the pre-legislative scrutiny process, which began in January of this year. The review is on-going and the Committee intends to publish its report early in 2019.

The introduction of legislation in relation to AHR and associated research is a priority for me and the process of drafting this Bill will be completed in conjunction with the Office of the Attorney General. However, it is not possible at this time to give a definitive timeline for the completion of the draft Bill and its subsequent passage through the Houses of the Oireachtas.

The aim of the AHR legislation is to promote and ensure the health and safety of parents, others involved in the process (such as donors and surrogate mothers) and, most importantly, the children who will be born as a result of AHR. Consideration of the welfare and best interests of children born through AHR is a key principle underpinning the Scheme.