Surrogacy

A few years ago, my wife suggested that we get a pet dog for the kids. The arguments were assembled: it is good for children to learn how to treat animals properly, it will get them outdoors and off the computer, they will get exercise by taking it around the block etc.

By the time we got the cute little thing air freighted to Sydney from the breeding kennel interstate, we had signed for it three times. Once when placing the order for the dog, once when booking it to be sent to Sydney and one more time when I picked it up at the airport. No signature, no puppy. Not once, but three times.

And the point of this story? Well at the moment the Tasmanian Parliament is debating a bill dealing with surrogacy. The bill in its current form permits two men, two women, a single man and even a heterosexual couple to enter into a surrogacy arrangement with a female person, to be known as the “birth mother”, who will seek to become pregnant and give birth to a child.

Continue reading "Tasmania’s surrogacy bill is a real dog’s breakfast" »

It doesn’t matter if it’s making babies as a commercial surrogate or a10-year-old kid stitching together basketball shoes in Vietnam, exploitation in any commercial transaction is wrong and should be punished.

But you don’t ban basketball shoes. And I don’t understand why Australians have been banned from using commercial surrogates overseas.

Last year NSW passed its Surrogacy Act which, when it comes into effect, will make pursuing commercial surrogacy overseas a criminal act.

Continue reading "Are we creating a generation of “cash in hand” mums?" »