New report provides unprecedented insight into UK surrogacy

A report by Dr Kirsty Horsey at the University of Kent has discovered it is a myth that a high proportion of potential parents from the UK go overseas if they need to use surrogacy.

Written in conjunction with Surrogacy UK and other organisations, this is the first report of its kind and provides an unprecedented insight into how surrogacy is practised in the UK, dispelling a number of pervasive myths that have informed recent debate on the issue.

In her report, which also calls for the reform of surrogacy laws, Dr Horsey disproves the misconception that UK citizens are most likely to go abroad to find a surrogate. Although she says the numbers are difficult to interpret -- as various official agencies record things in different ways -- there is clear evidence that the vast majority of British people wishing to pursue surrogacy do so in the UK, not abroad.

She also found that UK surrogacy is altruistic, in that it firmly rejects commercialisation. There was overwhelming support for legal reform in order, primarily, to ensure the welfare and interests of surrogate-born children, remove uncertainty over parenthood and broaden access to surrogacy.

Under UK law, surrogates are the legal mother of any child they carry, even if they are not genetically related, unless a parental order is granted by a court after they give birth, which transfers their rights to the intended parents. Highlighted by the report is the overwhelming support (75% of survey respondents) for legal reform in order to better represent how this works in practice. Both surrogates and intended parents want to remove the legal uncertainty over parenthood at the point of birth.

Furthermore, the report finds that 69% of surrogates are opposed to being able to change their mind about giving a baby back to its intended parents. Only 5% believe that a surrogate should be able to change her mind at any point.

Source: University of Kent