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Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 55A: 55A: Clause 14, page 9, line 14, leave out paragraph (b) and insert ““and after ““father”” insert ““or other suitable male adult who is willing and able to make a long term commitment to safeguard and promote the child’s health, development and welfare and to provide, in a manner appropriate to the age and development of the child, direction and guidance to the child””.”” The noble Lord said: Expert opinion and modern research tell us—as we have heard many times already this afternoon—that, on average, a child who grows up in a single-parent family is likely to be less successful in school and later life than a child who grows up in a functional two-parent family. Of course, this is not true in every case. In a single-parent family where the mother is healthy, reasonably well off and supported by an extended family or an active and committed community, as my noble friend pointed out, the child may well thrive. Indeed, there are great differences in natural resilience from child to child. The Minister referred to the quality of parenting being of prime importance. Of course it is, but that does not alter the fact that the roles, structures and relationships within the family will affect the quality of parenting. None the less, for the majority of children who grow up in a single-parent family, there are real disadvantages, which can easily last for life—and often do. I admit that remedial help is a possibility for children under those circumstances, but it is expensive, it takes time, it takes commitment and it does not always work. Fathers and mothers both have responsibilities in their families. The contributions made by the mother and father may be different, but both are important. I am reminded of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, which, I am delighted to say, has a new logo, which says: ““Women. Men. Different. Equal””. The purpose of Amendment No. 55A is to explore the possibility of a better solution that, rather than saying ““Yes, we do”” or ““No, we do not””, looks for a better way of doing things. I suggest that we do not remove the word ““father””, but leave it and add to it other classes of person who can effectively fulfil the role of a father. We all know that that is the situation in real life. There are step-parents, there are grandfathers, there are other surrogate fathers. If we wanted evidence, the success of adoption is the most obvious proof. Adoption, in the vast majority of cases, works extremely well where there is a committed father. I shall emphasise commitment again in a moment. My amendment, therefore, provides for a suitably qualified and committed surrogate father to be acceptable, in lieu of a father, for the purposes of legitimising IVF treatment. Secondly, it would give reasonable assurance that the surrogate father, and all fathers who are put forward to IVF clinics, are prepared and able to make a commitment to give the child the father parenting he will need. Commitment and stability are at the very heart of successful parenting. The conditions I have suggested would require a prospective surrogate father for an IVF child to make a commitment to accept the responsibilities of parenthood in relation to that child. What, then, are the responsibilities of parenthood? This, in a sense, is the question we all danced around in the previous debate. I have taken the liberty of suggesting very simple responsibilities of parenthood; please believe that these are not an invention. I have taken the wording from the Children (Scotland) Act 1995. Many noble Lords will be aware that the Parliament north of the border was bolder on the responsibilities of parenthood in its 1995 Act than we were in our Children Act 1989. We have not made up for the failing in the mean time. The time may now have come—indeed, I suggest that it is long past—when we in England should define more clearly what we, as a society, expect of our parents. The responsibilities of a mother tend to be widely understood and accepted, but the same is not always true of a father. Many noble Lords who spoke to the previous amendment referred to that large group of fathers who would prefer not to accept that being a father carries with it inalienable responsibilities. To define these responsibilities would, I suggest, be in the best interests of both mothers and children. Finally, my amendment would sweep natural fathers into the net. This may be objected to, but it seems to me perfectly reasonable that not only a surrogate father, but a natural father, should be expected to commit to being a good parent and should accept some simple terms about what it means to be a good parent. Alas, as we all know, and as some noble Lords have already said, too many families are affected by domestic violence, drug and alcohol addiction and many other failures that are extremely damaging to the children. I can see no reason why an IVF clinic should not be required to satisfy itself that the child it manufactures will not be entrusted to a dysfunctional family of that kind. It seems to me reasonable that, where there is a prospective natural father to the child, he too should be expected to commit to accepting the responsibilities of a parent, as defined in this amendment. We are in Committee and time is getting on. I can speak again after the Minister, so I shall say no more now. I beg to move.