I am delighted to be here this evening to note the publication of the pre-legislative scrutiny report in respect of the Bill. This is the last item of business for 2025 and I believe it is an extremely important one to discuss. I thank the Cathaoirleach of the Joint Committee on Health, Deputy Rice, and commend him on his commitment and passion on this issue. I compliment committee members and committee staff for the highly collaborative and practical way they have worked with my ministerial colleagues and Department officials. I particularly acknowledge the co-operation of the committee for their commitment to producing the report in such a timely fashion. As Deputy Rice said, the committee worked last summer to do that. The PLS report includes a total of 18 recommendations, which the Deputy has gone through. I assure him and the committee that the issues raised have been and are being considered as part of the formal drafting process. At this juncture and point in the deliberative process on the amending Bill, I cannot be specific on some of the issues raised. However, I can say that, without prejudice to the outcome of any future Oireachtas debates and decisions, it is anticipated at this point that many of the recommendations will be reflected in the legislation when it is published. There are many moving parts in legislating for the myriad of very complex issues associated with assisted human reproduction in Ireland. The PLS report was a key piece in the jigsaw, so its publication is welcomed. I also assure the House that work is continuing on other elements in this area and I am happy to report that much progress has been made and intensive work is continuing. As the House will be aware, the Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Act was signed into law by the President in July last year, having passed all stages in both Houses of the Oireachtas. The primary purpose of this complex and far-reaching legislation is to regulate fertility clinics providing assisted human reproduction. The AHR Bill, as initially published, also included provisions in respect of domestic altruistic surrogacy. However, the final 2024 Act also includes substantive new provisions in respect of the regulation of future surrogacy arrangements undertaken by Irish residents in other jurisdictions and the recognition of parentage arising from certain past domestic and international surrogacy arrangements. While the 2024 Act was progressing through the Houses of the Oireachtas, issues were identified that required further consideration and consultation with the Office of the Attorney General. Formal drafting of the AHR amendment Bill, which is largely concerned with outstanding issues of parentage and citizenship but also seeks to make other refinements and improvements to various sections of the AHR Act 2024 itself, is at an advanced stage, led by the Office of Parliamentary Counsel, in conjunction with officials from the Departments of Health, Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, and Children, Disability and Equality. Drafting work on the amending Bill is continuing. Some administrative sections of the 2024 Act have been commenced, specifically to allow the Assisted Human Reproduction Regulatory Authority, AHRRA, to be formally established. In addition, the Minister expects to commence section 232 of the 2024 Act, which would result in the parentage of some donor-conceived children not covered by the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015 being officially recognised. The board of the regulatory authority, chaired by Professor Deirdre Madden, has met on a number of occasions. It is expected that a CEO will be appointed very soon. These developments represent very significant milestones on our path to providing the necessary oversight and regulation in this area of health. It is worth emphasising two crucial principles that have underpinned all legislative measures in this sphere. First, the many safeguards and requirements within the legislation are there to protect the rights and welfare of intending parents, surrogate mothers and, most of all, all the children born as a result of assisted human reproduction. Of course, as a Government, we are committed to doing our best to achieve the best outcomes for all involved. As I am sure the Deputy will agree, this whole area needs to be looked at forensically through a human rights lens, with an absolute focus on the care and protection of the surrogate mother. We need to carry out every human rights appraisal and evaluation possible to prevent possible exploitation of individuals. The Minister is obliged to protect the women we do not hear from - the women who do not have a voice. We must also consider and give due regard to EU and international developments in this space and learn the valuable lessons that experience and practice show us. As an Oireachtas, we must use the opportunity the PLS report presents to reflect and to make sure that we get this right. We need to actively to listen to all of the viewpoints and be confident that advancing rights for some is not at the cost of the rights of others. I understand that the Department of justice is working closely with the Department of Health to ensure that the health (assisted human reproduction) (amendment) Bill has sufficient safeguards to protect the rights of surrogate mothers, including from the threat of human trafficking, and continues to engage with the Department of Health on the matter as drafting continues. Through the regulation of both international and domestic surrogacy, the 2024 Act guards against the trafficking of women for the purpose of exploitation through surrogacy. This will be ensured, in the first place, by the criteria used by the AHRRA to approve surrogacy jurisdictions. This will include consideration of the laws regarding surrogacy in the jurisdiction, the regulation and oversight of those involved in the provision of services related to surrogacy, and the rights of surrogate mothers, including the extent to which they are enforced. Consideration will also be given to the ability of the authority to monitor compliance with the provisions of the AHR Act in that jurisdiction. This goal will also be achieved by the ban on commercial surrogacy, which will reduce any financial incentive to trafficking for the purpose of exploitation through surrogacy. Similarly, there are controls in place as regards the payments to intermediaries. Separately, it will be necessary for the surrogate mother to receive appropriate information and independent legal advice prior to entering a surrogacy agreement. Finally, there will be a residency requirement of two years in the surrogacy jurisdiction before a woman can act as a surrogate mother. Combined, these measures provide robust protections and safeguards against the possible exploitation of surrogate mothers. Second, all provisions in the 2015 Act, the 2024 Act and the forthcoming Bill in respect of donor-assisted human reproduction and surrogacy apply equally, irrespective of whether the intending parents are a same-sex couple or an opposite-sex couple, or if there is a single intending parent. Finally, on behalf of the Minister and myself, I again commend the health committee on the report and recommendations. The Minister looks forward to continuing to progress the AHR legislation and develop the regulatory framework in the spirit of co-operation demonstrated to date by the committee and the Oireachtas as a whole. I apologise on behalf of the Minister who was not in a position to be here herself this evening.
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I thank all the Members for their valuable contributions this evening. The Minister, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, as Members know, is very supportive of this legislation. I acknowledge the parents who are in the Public Gallery from various advocacy groups who worked and engaged with the 2024 Act and are doing exactly the same again with this new Act that is under way. This is extremely complex legislation, as everyone can appreciate. As Chief Whip, one of my roles relates to legislation. I had the end-of-year wrap-up with the Attorney General and the Office of Parliamentary Counsel to the Government yesterday afternoon. We discussed the Bill and it is under way. It is legally complex and technical and there is a lot of good co-operation between the Department of Health and the Department of justice on it. While the Minister was hopeful that the Bill would be ready prior to Christmas, it will get priority drafting. It certainly will get any priority supports it needs from my end as Chief Whip. It is great to have consensus across the Dáil. It does not always happen. As Deputy Sherlock said, this is really important for a small group of parents who need this vital legislation for themselves and their children. I assure Deputies that I will inform the Minister of the constructive observations made today, especially in respect of section 232, which Deputies Rice and Sherlock both spoke about. In fairness, the Minister wrote the speech herself. She is very invested in this and I wish to acknowledge that. I also acknowledge the former Minister, Stephen Donnelly, with whom I worked closely in the Department for five years as well as former Senator, Mary Seery Kearney, who put her heart and soul into this work. While he will not be a bit happy, I also wish to acknowledge my adviser sitting in the Public Gallery, Mr. Páraic Gallagher, who worked closely on this with many of the parents in the previous Dáil. I also know that relevant officials from the Department will have been closely taking notes of all the queries, comments and issues raised tonight as they look to finalise the Bill. I believe we are at that stage. I have set out the progress being made on various fronts on the path to having a robust and operational regulatory framework for assisted human reproduction, AHR. Indeed, completion of the pre-legislative scrutiny report was an important element in the process. Once again, I compliment Deputy Rice for his commitment and passion to getting this over the line. One of the key recommendations and issues raised by the committee relates to communication and awareness. The Government and I completely agree on the importance of clarity on any new laws that will be introduced and, if applicable, transitional arrangements. Under the terms of the legislation, the AHRRA will produce relevant information documents. I also know that Members wish to have certainty about when exactly the Bill will be published. There is continued intensive engagement involving the lead Departments and the Office of the Attorney General on a number of complex issues. The outcome of a number of ongoing relevant legal cases will also have a direct bearing on the ability to finalise the Bill. However, I assure Deputies that all involved are fully committed to completing the work required to publish the Bill as soon as it is practical. As one example, a recommendation in the pre-legislative scrutiny report seeks the inclusion of a process to recognise the parentage of Irish citizens living abroad who have children through surrogacy or donor-assisted human reproduction, DAHR. This is being proposed to be included in the Bill, with the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration taking the lead. I know that Deputy Rice and fellow Deputies will appreciate the complexities involved and the challenge on producing appropriate, balanced and coherent legislation. EU member states have been considering the matter of basic mutual recognition of parentage at EU level for many years and agreeing a common approach has proven to be exceptionally challenging, given the complexities involved. Nevertheless, the Government is determined to find solutions to this. The Minister is determined to find solutions to this and to many other outstanding questions. Intensive work will continue in the new year to advance the health (assisted human reproduction) (amendment) Bill, the commencement of the 2024 Act, and the operational capacity of the AHRRA. All that remains for me to do is to wish everyone a very happy Christmas. I thank the Ceann Comhairle for all her support to me as Chief Whip over the last ten or 11 months. It has been a baptism of fire, maybe for both of us. It has been a lot of busy days and late nights. It is fitting that on the first day of the new Dáil, I was not Chief Whip at the time, but when the Taoiseach was appointed after that first day both of us took to the floor first and both of us are concluding here tonight. I wish everyone a happy Christmas and especially those in the Public Gallery. I thank all the staff in the Houses who are here late on a Thursday night. It is often known as the graveyard shift but I believe this is one of the most important pieces of legislation on the most important topic that we can debate and it is fitting that it is the last debate this year. Thank you.
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That is not true.
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It was 21 Bills this year and there are 25 going through the Houses. I just want to put that on the record as there is so much misinformation out there.
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Twenty-one. Five more are to be signed in this week. So that is 16 with five more to be signed in. I apologise to the Ceann Comhairle for the over and back but I think clarity is important. There are 25 Bills through the Houses. I have given eight sessions between the Dáil and the Seanad on the Mental Health Bill, with 650 amendments. They take time.
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We had committees as well.
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