With only a short time to go before Mr. Justice Henry Abbott lays down his judgment on what is a landmark case for surrogacy which has been looking at who in law should be viewed as the mother in such arrangements, the case itself has sparked some controversial reactions.

The Iona Institute, a conservative, Catholic lobby group based in Ireland, has waded in on the topic. With its recently launched report “The Case Against Surrogate Motherhood”, the Iona Institute argues that legitimised surrogacy not only commercialises conception but creates an overly complex and confusing identity for children born out of such arrangements. Furthermore, the report goes on to examine the dangers of surrogacy when considering the detached nature of a surrogate – a detachment, the report argues, which is both dangerous and emotionally traumatising for the child and where that detachment does not exist, creates a risk of the surrogate not wishing to part with that child.

The report goes on to make its final point – that dissuading countries from registering genetic parents on birth certificates in surrogacy agreements is a necessary measure to put prospective parents looking for surrogates, off. David Quinn, founder of the Iona Institute, has been speaking with the national media in Ireland about the case and why he feels surrogacy should be banned.

This is an incredibly complex and exciting field; filled with scientific contradictions as well as philosophical ones, where the welfare of the child seems to be sidelined in favour of an adult debate. We would love to hear what children of surrogacy agreements feel on the matter, and whether they agree with everything that’s being said on their behalf.