Every Senator who spoke in that debate, from both sides of the House, agreed there was a need for legislation. In his speech five months ago, the Minister of State said, "The Department of Health recognises, however, that the regulatory regime currently in force is general in nature and that scientific developments in this area, or indeed the possible entry of less scrupulous interests into this field, may call into question the adequacy of those arrangements in the future."
Five months later we have a situation which is even more difficult. All I can do is applaud the clinic which has announced it will become involved in collecting human eggs because it had no reason to tell us. I suppose, however, that we would have found out because advertisements will have to be placed in the newspapers to attract healthy young women to donate their eggs from an altruistic point of view.
There are no legal provisions here for in vitro fertilisation, such as exist in every other country in the western world. Are we going to wait for a serious medical accident or a court case before we take any action? Professor James Clinch, who was head of the Medical Council's ethics committee, put it very well when he said on radio that collecting human eggs does not involve pressing someone's belly button to produce them. It is a complicated technique which requires invasion of the woman's body and taking drugs which can, in certain circumstances, lead to the death of the person. Healthy volunteers - people who are not patients - are being asked to take part in procedures which pose a risk to their own lives. If action is not taken now we will end up with an unfortunate accident.
Every Member of the House said my Bill was needed. I was astonished it was not sent on to Committee Stage because a select committee of the Oireachtas would contain a huge cross-section of opinion and could call expert witnesses. We would have five months' work done by now if the Minister had accepted the need for such a Bill.
I realise the Minister said the Bill was not perfect, which I did not think it was. He said it was inadequate in some ways. I was not in the least offended by that because, while I had the good fortune to have two lawyers to help me draft it, the Minister has a whole Department and legal draftspersons to help him bring forward legislation.
Why is there a delay in addressing this serious situation? I have been contacted by members of the medical profession and people who have been involved in in vitro fertilisation as clients, some of whom succeeded in having a baby. I have been contacted by people who have serious doubts about the ethics of the process. One does not need to be in favour of in vitro fertilisation to want some legislation and regulation. The reason no further effort is being made to do anything about this area, which is crying out for urgent action, is that it is considered a sensitive issue in this country.
Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. Fahey): The Minister for Health and Children and I thank Senator Henry for raising this important issue. The Minister has asked me to say that he shares her concern about the need to ensure that the very complex area of assisted human reproduction is appropriately regulated.
From the point of view of individuals who are unable to conceive through conventional reproductive means, assisted reproduction can prove a long and difficult process and can place immense strains and pressure on couples. There are no guarantees that conception will result in all cases.
Assisted human reproduction is a rapidly developing field. Major developments have taken place in a relatively short period of time and are continuing. This has, undoubtedly, had many positive effects, in terms of enhancing the quality of life of couples with impaired fertility by enabling them to conceive.
Techniques such as in vitro fertilisation and the freezing of sperm and ova are available in Ireland. These programmes fall within the Medical Council guidelines, provided that doctors:
have regard to the biological difficulties involved, and pay meticulous attention to the source of the donated material. Doctors who fail to counsel both donor and recipient thoroughly about the potential social, medical and legal implications of such measures and the possible consequences for the would be parents and their baby could face disciplinary proceedings.
The Medical Council guidelines apply only to registered medical practitioners and would be ineffective in the case of any service operated by other persons. The pace of new developments and the possibility of entry of less scrupulous interests into this field raise questions about how best it should be regulated. The Minister acknowledges the concerns expressed by the Senator in the area of regulation, and he is committed to ensuring they are addressed.
It is of special concern to the Minister for Health and Children that the issues involved are addressed in a comprehensive manner. The area of assisted reproduction embraces a wide range of very sensitive and complex issues, with associated complex legal, ethical, social and medical implications.
Among the core issues raised by the ability of medical science to intervene in human reproduction, and which need to be considered in the context of regulation, are whether regulation is best achieved by legislation or reliance on medical ethics, or a combination of the two; the replacement, freezing and subsequent usage or disposal of embryos; the freezing and subsequent usage or disposal of sperm; the regulation of who may use the services, for example, the age and marital status of couples; the regulation of donor programmes, surrogacy, legal parentage, succession rights, registration of births, etc; possible screening of embryos for genetic conditions; research on embryos; and cloning. Issues such as licensing of facilities, qualifications of staff, conditions of storage of embryos and other human reproductive material, optimum number of treatments in an individual case, testing of infectious diseases, record keeping and data collection will also need to be considered.
Having regard to the sensitivities surrounding these issues, the Minister firmly believes it is imperative we ensure that whatever policy is adopted in relation to this area is underpinned by an informed, reasoned and balanced approach. For this reason, it is essential that if legislation is the preferred route, it should result from careful and comprehensive consideration of the wide range of issues involved and, in particular, should reflect in a balanced way the general views of society. Accordingly, the Minister for Health and Children has asked me to inform the Senator he intends bringing forward proposals to Government early in the new year to address this complex area.
A great deal of work has gone into this question since we discussed Senator Henry's Bill five months ago. While that work has not been made public, the Department has worked very hard. I assure the Senator we are anxious to proceed down the path she outlined this evening. However, as she has said on a number of occasions, it is an exceptionally complex area. It is vitally important, therefore, that the route we take is carefully thought out. The Minister will, as I said, bring proposals before the Government early in the new year. I thank Senator Henry for raising the matter again. I will return to her as soon as we have some proposals ready.
Dr. Henry: Early in which new year? I am extremely disappointed by the Minister of State's reply. The most serious thing said to me was by a doctor who said that legislation will be brought in over the dead body of a woman. I do not think any real consideration has been given to the seriousness of this situation. Further clinics have opened since I spoke here in July and more techniques-----
An Cathaoirleach: Senator Henry-----
Dr. Henry: I am sorry. This delay will lead us into a situation of disaster.
Mr. Fahey: As the Senator has raised the issue again, I will ask the Department's officials to redouble their efforts to have the matter ready for Cabinet as soon as possible. I appreciate the Senator's sincerity and the urgency of the matter.
Dr. Henry: Thank you. Great concern has been expressed to me in this area.
