Parliamentary committee for IVF proposes freezing of embryos, but no sperm donation for sterile couples

The select committee based its recommendations to Cabinet, which will be responsible to send the report for law-drafting, on expert advice by medical professionals in the field - even though written submissions by interested parties, such as the Director of Health, called on the committee to limit IVF to married couples and denying the possibility of freezing embryos.

The freezing of embryos will allow women to go through less cycles of stimulation, to produce enough ova (eggs) that can be fertilised artificially and then implanted. "Ideally, two eggs would be implanted," Nationalist MP and committee chairman Jean Pierre Farrugia, who is a doctor, said. "Freezing would also reduce mortality and morbidity caused to the woman by hormone stimulating therapy."

But the committee wants to preclude the possibility of sperm donation, in a bid to encourage sterile couples to adopt frozen embryos that are not required by the couples who have been successful in childbearing.

The committee says it will see whether these couples can be incentivised into adopting these embryos, but Farrugia acknowledged the existence of a European Court of Human Rights ruling that challenged the Austrian government's ban on sperm donation.

While issues relating to gay couples were not within the remit of the committee, the creation of a category of "stable relationships" - defined as couples whose medical history provides proof of their unsuccessful attempts at having children - would inevitably shut the door to homosexuals wanted to use IVF.

While calling for government to regulate the sector, the report says that in-vitro fertilisation should be made available to heterosexual couples in a stable relationship and not just to married couples. An independent regulatory authority would be created to oversee the sector.

Two other doctors, Nationalist backbencher Francis Agius and Labour MP Michael Farrugia set on the select committee.

The report was agreed unanimously.