It's time we discuss surrogacy, PL backbencher urges parliament
MP Romilda Zarb advocates for a mature debate to address realities of women who cannot safely carry a pregnancy
It's time to start a mature and responsible debate on introducing surrogacy, a Labour backbench MP told parliament on Tuesday.
Romilda Zarb argued Malta must not let fear or prejudice block couples who cannot carry a child.
Surrogacy remains a highly controversial topic, touching on people's deep-seated ethical and religious beliefs, she said, but the state has a duty to address the realities of women who cannot safely carry a pregnancy due to severe medical conditions.
Malta currently bans surrogacy, though parliament recently approved an amendment extending maternity leave to parents who have children through surrogacy abroad - a move Zarb described as a step toward equality that fixed a legal anomaly where only fathers qualified for leave.
"If we had remained afraid of every controversial subject, we wouldn't be talking about nearly a thousand babies born through IVF today," Zarb said.
She urged MPs to look past legal debates and focus on the real people who have no other option to become parents.
Zarb said major progress was made in assisted reproduction since 2013. She noted 4,757 prospective parents benefited from IVF services between 2013 and late 2025, and 1,109 children were born or are expected to be born through these procedures.
The "take-home baby" success rate in 2025 was 45%, up from just 18% in 2013, and €6.7 million was allocated for IVF services for 2026, a massive jump from the €75,000 budget in 2013.
She also said 2,322 prospective parents have benefited from over €4.6 million in free IVF-related medications and pointed to the recent birth of Malta's first baby born using Pre-Implantation Genetic Testing for Monogenic Diseases (PGT-M), which allows parents carrying serious genetic disorders to screen embryos for the condition.
Apart from fertility treatments, Zarb welcomed upcoming government initiatives under the country's first Women's Health Strategy, including free Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) and free medication for endometriosis, a painful condition that often severely impacts women's personal, professional, and reproductive lives.
Acknowledging that surrogacy will bring out highly diverse opinions, Zarb said political progress has never meant everyone agreeing, but rather having the courage to make difficult decisions so that "invisible minorities" are not left behind.