Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 November 2018
558. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the date for the commencement of the relevant provisions of the Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2014 such that Part 9 of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 can be commenced. [46726/18]
View answerSections 92, 93, 95 and 99 of the Children and Family provide for the registration and re-registration of the birth of a donor-conceived child but these sections have to be amended and have yet to be commenced. Commencement of these provisions is dependent on commencement of Parts 2 & 3 of the Act, which is the responsibility of the Minister for Health.
The Children and Family Relationships (Amendment) Bill 2018 was enacted on 24 July 2018. This Act was introduced to correct typographical and technical errors in the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015, which will facilitate the subsequent commencement of Parts 2 & 3 of the Act. It is Minister for Health's intention that Parts 2 & 3 of the Act will be commenced as soon as possible.
Officials from the General Register Office, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection, and the Department of Health are working together to ensure that the appropriate regulatory and operational mechanisms are in place to allow for the earliest possible commencement of all of the relevant legislation that will allow for birth registration of donor-conceived children.
It is not possible, at this point, to be definitive about a date for commencement, or when registrations or re-registrations will be available, but all efforts are being made to bring this about as early as possible.
The commencement of other sections of Part 9 of the Act (unrelated to birth registration of donor-conceived children) is dependent on provisions of the Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2014 being commenced. These sections may be commenced separately and do not affect bringing into force of legislation to provide for birth registration of donor-conceived children.
