Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 July 2018
1822. Deputy Fiona O'Loughlin asked the Minister for Health if the recent Children and Family Relationships (Amendment) Act 2018 addresses the concerns raised in correspondence (details supplied). [35114/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Children and Family Relationships (Amendment) Bill 2018 passed the Houses of the Oireachtas on 17 July 2018. This Bill 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 important to note that the Children and Family Relationships (Amendment) Bill 2018 does not change any of the substantive provisions or the policy intention of Parts 2 & 3 of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015. It is intended that Parts 2 & 3 of the Children and Family Relationships Act will be commenced in the autumn of 2018.
Parts 2 & 3 of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 provide for the criteria governing the performance of a donor-assisted human reproduction procedure. These provisions apply to heterosexual couples, female same sex couples and single women who undergo a donor-assisted human reproduction procedure, where the procedure was carried out in the State and where the child is born in the State.
Parts 2 and 3 of the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 specifically relate to donor-assisted human reproduction procedures where the intending mother is also the birth mother. As such they do not encompass surrogacy. Provisions relating to the regulation of surrogacy in Ireland are included in the general scheme of the Assisted Human Reproduction Bill 2017.
The General Scheme is published on the Department of Health's website and 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.
