Labour MP Debra Shipley has called for a change in the UK regulations governing posthumous conception, which rule that a father's name cannot be put on the birth certificate of a child conceived after his death. Speaking during the introduction of her Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Amendment) Bill in the House of Commons last week, Ms Shipley described the current legislation as 'shocking'.
Ms Shipley told parliament about her constituent Marian Jordan, whose husband David was diagnosed with cancer shortly after their marriage. The couple decided to preserve his sperm, which Mrs Jordan used after his death to conceive their son, Simon. But Mr Jordan cannot not be registered on the baby's birth certificate. 'When the law was drafted in 1990 no-one could foresee this happening but Marian is very upset about this' said Ms Shipley.
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Birth certificate ban on dead fathers 'must end'
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