SINGLE women undergoing fertility treatment will be able to name almost any other adult as their child’s second parent on the birth certificate, under laws coming into force next month.
A man being named as the “father” or even a woman as the second parent will not need to be biologically related to the baby and will not even need to be the mother’s boyfriend or girlfriend.
Guidance issued last week by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) states that, as long as a second parent agrees to take on legal rights and responsibilities, they can be named on the birth certificate and consent forms in IVF clinics. The only exclusions are close blood relations.
The arrangements come into force from April 6 and critics claim they are a further erosion of family values. Advocates say they will provide more support for one-parent families. The rules state: “The woman receiving treatment with donor sperm (or embryos created with donor sperm) can consent to any man or woman being the father or second parent.”
Critics say the laws allow single women to choose random individuals and will lead to genetically incorrect information on the birth certificate.
They say legal parents will be nominated in the way godparents have traditionally been chosen, often based on transient friendships. They fear that, if the second parent has no biological link to the child and is not the boyfriend or girlfriend of the mother, the arrangement will be fragile.
Opponents also argue the legal changes further dismantle the traditional family.
David Jones, professor of bioethics at St Mary’s University College in southwest London, said: “These fathers or second parents sound more like godparents. I wonder how wise it is to encourage people to do this because the ‘father’ or second parent will have legal rights and responsibilities.”
He added: “This sounds like social engineering on the hoof. This is now arbitrary.” Baroness Ruth Deech, a former chair of the HFEA, said: “What I object to is the falsification of the birth certificate. It is supposed to be a true record of the genetic origins of birth.
“This is putting the rights and wishes of the parents way above those of the child. It is absurd that anyone can be named as the father or the second parent.”
The HFEA points out that, for the first time, when donated sperm is used, an unmarried woman will be asked who she consents to being named as the child’s “father” or second parent. The chosen parent will also need to give specific consent.
Clinics will be obliged to offer counselling before the agreements are signed. It would be unlikely for the donor to be
named on the birth certificate because the sample is normally obtained from a sperm bank.
The health department says the new laws, set out in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008, clarify the legal identity of parents who are not married or in civil partnerships.
For women who are married or in a civil partnership and who use donor sperm, the husband or lesbian girlfriend will automatically be named unless they make a written objection.
The laws also remove the need for clinics to consider a child’s “need for a father” when offering fertility treatment, a move to prevent discrimination against lesbian couples.
Supporters of the changes deny random individuals will be named as parents because they will need to give formal consent to legal obligations, including potentially being pursued for financial contributions to the upbringing of the child.
Evan Harris, a Liberal Democrat MP, said: “This is a big step and is unlikely to be taken by someone who does not take their responsibilities seriously.”
by Sarah-Kate Templeton
