Committee says posthumous conception should be allowed

A draft Bill should be amended to allow for the eggs or sperm of a deceased person to be used in limited circumstances, a Dáil committee has recommended.

The Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality published a report today following on from submissions and hearings in relation to the scheme of the Children and Family Relationships Bill.

The current draft Bill states that, if an intended parent has died, their consent is no longer valid, meaning posthumous conception is effectively not allowed.

However, in hearings before the committee earlier this year, a number of stakeholders called for a provision to be included in the Bill which would allow for limited posthumous conception.

These included Human Assisted Reproduction Ireland which argued that posthumous reproduction should be facilitated if written consent from the deceased could be produced.

The committee also heard arguments against the proposal, mainly centring on concerns over the welfare of the child and inheritance and property rights.

It heard that while posthumous conception in certain circumstances was common practice in many EU countries, time limits were imposed in some countries to ensure that the administration of the deceased person’s estate was not unduly delayed pending the birth of any potential successors.

The committee also recommended that consideration should be given as to whether the Bill could be amended to provide for the right of a child to access information concerning their genetic identity.

The recommendation was welcomed by the Children's Rights Alliance whose chief executive Tanya Ward said children born as a result of Assisted Human Reproduction should have a right to access information about their genetic identity.

"The draft Bill needs to be revisited based on the Justice Committee's report and Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald needs to progress this legislation without delay," Ms Ward said yesterday.