Taoiseach indicates U-turn on banning anonymous sperm and egg donation

The use of anonymous sperm and eggs in assisted IVF and surrogacy might not be outlawed after all, according to the Taoiseach. Speaking in the Dail yesterday, Leo Varadkar, said a decision on that question has yet to be made. This amounts to a significant change of policy for the Government as they have previously maintained that the practice would be banned.

In response to a question during private members time, the Taoiseach said the whole area of assisted human reproduction in Ireland is not illegal but it is also not legislated for. Emphasising the work that needed to be done in preparing for legislation, he said: “There are many questions that will require decisions on our part as to what will and will not be legal, including what forms of surrogacy will be allowed and whether we will continue to allow the practice of anonymous donation of sperms and eggs.”

He added that he understood “why people would want that to continue but if we are pursuing a child-centred policy, where children have the right to know who their parents are and that speaks to our history, perhaps that is something we should not allow.”

He finished by indicating it may be a matter for an Oireachtas Health committee to decide.