Surrogacy.

I caught a bit of a programme this morning. A woman who was having a child by a surrogate mother, had been refused maternity leave by her employer because she was not the birth mother. But the surrogate mother is entitled to maternity leave and was taking it.

Do you think the leave should be transferred over to the mother who will be bringing up the baby?

Re: Surrogacy.

That's an odd one yes I would say new mother really should be given maternity leave

Re: Surrogacy.

It is an odd one. The new mum should be given time to bond with the baby, it is very important that they form a relationship very early on. It must be stressful for both to be separated when the baby is so young.

Re: Surrogacy.

Could she not get Statutory Adoption Leave ?
I know next to nothing about the rules but that would seem to me in essence to be the situation.

I would qualify my remarks by stressing it is only a suggestion not a comment on surrogacy.

Re: Surrogacy.

Apparently the intended parents don't adopt the baby, they are granted a parental order, which hands over the baby to the intended parents. So I would imagine the adoption leave would not apply, but of course I am only guessing.

Re: Surrogacy.

Dont you have maternity leave to get over the birth, and the child wouldnt know who the mother was would they.

Re: Surrogacy.

That's a new one on me, God help whoever has to sort that one out.

Re: Surrogacy.

The human race do not make life easy for itself.

Re: Surrogacy.

Just a thought, say female A and male B can both produce the constituant parts to produce a baby but were for a medical reason unable to sucessfully carry the fertilised egg full term.
Female C agrees to become the 'host' and duly delivers of the child and hands it to the donors (A+B).

The baby, surely is to all intents and purposes the fruit of A&B, both genetically and any other way really.

It is hard to understand why the new parents cannot be given the same allowances as any other couple.

It is as Jimmy says very difficult to apply the rules, the only way I regret to say would appear to be a points system.

I would hate this to sound flippant and it is not meant to be but there has to be a difference in content, in say one or both donors or perhaps in rare cases even neither.

This yardstick would have to be a factor when determining the entitlement.

Re: Surrogacy.

Maybe they could do a King Solomon job on it, only instead of slicing the baby in half they halve the maternity leave money between the two Women, how's that for a solution from a commoner.