The Minister for Justice, Alan Shatter, has defended his proposed Family and Relationships bill, which seeks to regulate the whole area of Assisted Human Reproduction but which overlooks the importance of giving a child a mother and a father.
“It is important that legislation should support couples who wish to create a family together” Minister Shatter said in a speech to the Family Lawyers Association.
“I believe that the proposed approach can safeguard the welfare of the child while protecting vulnerable potential surrogates against exploitation. At the same time, these provisions will enable couples, not otherwise able to become parents together, to have a pathway to parentage”, he continued.
Shatter made no reference to marriage as an ideal, or to the importance of the natural ties, or to children benefiting from having a mother and father, instead saying that “our laws were framed in a different age and for different social circumstances.
That is why the Government made a commitment in the Programme for Government that we would address the issue. We have indicated that we will modernise and reform outdated elements of family law. Legislation in this area cannot be a one-size fits all solution but must, in a creative and pragmatic way, reflect the needs of families and children in 21st century Ireland with the focus firmly fixed on the best interests of the child.”
Minister Shatter noted the pending Supreme Court decision regarding surrogacy, (LINK) but did not comment further.