Any contract made by a couple with a woman to bear their child should not be considered legally enforcable, Dr Mary Henry (Ind) told the House. She was initiating the second stage debate on her private members' Bill to regulate assisted human reproduction.
Under the proposed measure, a surrogate contract would have no legal effect. Dr Henry said that in other countries where laws equivalent to the Sale of Goods Act had been applied to cases where the gestational mother decided to keep the child, traumatic situations had emerged.
Legislation in the area of human reproduction was urgently needed, she argued. While Medical Council guidelines were useful, they had no legal standing and it was not known whether they were violated. Her Bill called for a register of practitioners which would be maintained by the Minister for Health. Only those on the register would be permitted to practise.
The minister would be advised by an ethical committee whose members would be appointed by the Minister, the Medical Council, An Bord Altranais and the Higher Education Authority, and would include two members representing "diverse moral views" who would be nominated by the Cathaoirleach of the Seanad. The committee would assist the Minister in formulating public policy.
The Minister of State for Health, Mr Frank Fahey, said while it was well intentioned, the Bill did not, in the Government's view, provide an adequate framework for the regulation of assisted human reproduction. He said the Minister shared Dr Henry's desire that this increasingly complex area of activity should be subject to a greater degree of regulation.
The Minister recognised that a policy initiative was required and he was in discussion with the Attorney General about the possible inclusion of this area in the work programme of the Law Reform Commission as the next step in the process of examining how the area might be regulated.
The second reading of Dr Henry's Bill was defeated by 22 votes to 15. None of the four Progressive Democrat members voted against. Ms Margaret Cox FF) did not vote.