All entries on Feminist Legal Clinic’s News Digest Blog are extracts from news articles and other publications, with the source available at the link at the bottom. The content is not originally generated by Feminist Legal Clinic and does not necessarily reflect our views.
Surrogates would receive monthly payments of up to $2000 for the “pain and discomfort of pregnancy” under a proposed overhaul of Australia’s surrogacy laws.
Labelling the current system “confusing, restrictive and not fit for purpose”, the Australian Law Reform Commission has also recommended consistent surrogacy laws across the country and a new national regulator.
The recommendations come as a record number of Australians go overseas for surrogacy arrangements due to a shortage of domestic surrogates.
Last financial year, 369 children born through surrogacy arrangements became Australian citizens, up from 218 in 2021. It has been reported that in 2020, about 76 children were born through domestic surrogacy.
In a bid to boost the number of domestic surrogates, the commission recommended reimbursing Australian surrogates for more of the real costs and losses of surrogacy to ensure they are not out of pocket.
Surrogacy Australia operations manager Anna McKie said the new hardship payments were not about profit, but that they acknowledged the profound “wear and tear” on a woman’s body and mind during and after pregnancy.
One of the most exciting proposals, McKie said, was the introduction of surrogacy support organisations that could oversee financial arrangements between surrogates and intended parents and co-ordinate payments in a trust account.
[Ed: Very exciting development for those intent on the unconscionable exploitation of women and children. This demonstrates that submissions by many feminist groups, asking for a complete ban on all surrogacy, fell on deaf ears at the ALRC. Disturbingly this reporting by the SMH fails to provide any representation of the objections to these recommendations which effectively introduce commercial surrogacy by stealth, indicates significant capture of this media by vested interests.]
Source: Plan to pay Australian surrogates for the toll of pregnancy