Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department to prevent the commodification of surrogacy.

The Surrogacy Arrangements Act (1985) sets out provisions to ensure that surrogacy arrangements and surrogacy organisations are not-for-profit and prohibits the advertising of anyone willing to be a surrogate or anyone seeking a surrogate in the United Kingdom.

The Law Commissions of England & Wales and Scotland published a report and draft bill of their review of the surrogacy legislation on 29 March 2023. The report’s recommendations reiterate that surrogacy should continue to operate in the UK on an altruistic, rather than a commercial, basis. The Government is considering the report and will publish a response in due course.