Loading ...

Former French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal made a notable return to the public stage recently — though his reappearance was quickly overshadowed by an even more striking statement from his successor. As secretary general of Renaissance, a French centrist and pro-European political party founded by President Emmanuel Macron, Attal announced the launch of a “thematic convention” within the party, aimed at examining surrogacy. For Attal, who has previously expressed support for the practice (currently strictly illegal in France), the debate is urgent due to the questions of equality it raises, particularly in light of a planned overhaul of France’s bioethics laws in 2026. This timetable, however, remains uncertain given the country’s turbulent political climate and past delays in revising these laws. Observers have noted that beyond Attal’s personal convictions, this move likely offers him an opportunity to distinguish his position from Macron, who has consistently considered the legalization of surrogacy a “red line.”

Public Support for Legalization

In any case, surrogacy remains a sensitive topic in France. The political class is generally cautious, and most politicians remain opposed. Concerns range from the commodification of the body and the exploitation of vulnerable women — issues that resonate across both left and right — to more traditional views of motherhood defended by conservative representatives. Few are willing to consider exceptions. Yet among the French public, a significant shift appears underway. While polling on such topics can be difficult to interpret, surveys from 2022 indicate that a majority of French citizens expressed support for legalizing surrogacy: 75% for heterosexual couples and 59% for homosexual couples. These figures suggest that Attal’s initiative rests on a relatively solid foundation of public opinion.

Illusion or Pragmatism?

Whether it concerns Attal or the broader public, the prevailing argument in favor of surrogacy is the relevance of establishing an “ethical” framework. Some proponents go further, asserting that ethical surrogacy could serve as a safeguard against abuses abroad: Because France cannot prevent such practices in other countries, it should at least ensure the practice is as fair as possible for women, couples, and children.

For many opponents, however, ethical surrogacy is an illusion. Commodification will inevitably occur, exposing the most vulnerable women to uncontrolled risks. This perspective reflects not only skepticism about the effectiveness of regulatory bodies but also a deeper conviction that surrogacy — whether altruistic or unpaid — is fundamentally incompatible with ethical principles.

Basis of Ethical Surrogacy

Ethical surrogacy would rely on informed consent from the surrogate mothers.

In an opinion article for Le Monde, anthropologist Chantal Collard and psychoanalyst Geneviève Delaisi de Parseval explained that according to a law adopted recently in Quebec, both intended parents and the woman planning to carry the child must participate in a psychosocial information session conducted by a member of a designated professional order (a psychologist or social worker). Such sessions are meant to ensure that consent is informed and to clarify the rights and responsibilities of all parties.

More broadly, Valérie Depadt, a lecturer at the Sorbonne Paris Nord University, Paris, France, told La Croix: “As long as the major principles relating to the human body, enshrined in the Civil Code since the 1994 bioethics law, are respected, in particular those of nonpatrimoniality and respect for free and informed consent, under the control and protection of an independent health authority, we do not see what arguments can be put forward to oppose the legalization of surrogacy in France.”

These arguments are contested. Ensuring the full sincerity and independence of consent is extremely difficult. A recent European directive on preventing human trafficking states that the exploitation of surrogacy should be considered among the forms of trafficking when the defining elements are present, including coercion or deceptive inducement. The directive is aimed in particular at those who pressure women into becoming surrogates or mislead them into doing so, explained Ana-Luana Stoicea-Deram and Marie-Josèphe Devillers, co-chairs of the International Coalition for the Abolition of Surrogacy, writing in Marianne.

Feminist activist Gabrielle Siry-Houari, a local deputy mayor and feminist activist in northern Paris, argued on X that genuine consent does not negate the principle that no one can renounce their dignity. Drawing a parallel with the abolition of slavery, she noted that individuals cannot consent to being enslaved, even if they appear to do so voluntarily. By the same logic, she added, a person cannot validly agree to be used as part of a game or to sell their organs.

Rethinking Motherhood

Some commentators point out that bodily donation is already permitted under French law. Journalist Ariane Nicolas, writing in Philosophie Magazine, noted that since the 2011 bioethics law, organ donation is allowed not only between family members but also between individuals who can demonstrate a close and stable emotional bond of at least 2 years. This provision applies beyond heterosexual couples. Nicolas stressed that such donations are strictly voluntary and carefully regulated.

While comparing a kidney — a vital organ for the recipient — with a child — a living, autonomous person who is not essential for the surrogate — remains contentious, Nicolas argued that women should similarly be free to give up the child they carried. For the past 15 years, the French debate on surrogacy (still illegal in the country) has largely opposed two positions: the right of gay men to raise children carried by a willing woman and women’s right to protection against the commodification of their bodies. Currently, the latter view dominates in France. Yet, Nicolas highlighted, the perspective of the surrogate herself — the right of a woman to give her baby — has been mostly overlooked. Viewing the issue this way, she said, led her to reconsider her own position. Based on her personal experience and reflection, she came to question why women should be prohibited from giving away a child they carried.

Nicolas also urged a rethinking of traditional notions of motherhood, often tied exclusively to childbirth. In her view, this idea confines women to motherhood from the moment of birth, rather than recognizing that motherhood develops gradually through touch, voice, and shared daily experiences. “One is not born a mother by giving birth,” she wrote, “one becomes one by raising a child day by day.”

Perspectives From Gynecologists

Separating childbirth from motherhood — an idea gaining ground in medical and social discussions — offers a different way of thinking about surrogacy, provided one momentarily sets aside the ethical debate around commodification. For health professionals, however, the central issue remains medical risk. Can society accept that a consenting woman undertakes such significant risks for a pregnancy when no life is directly threatened, unlike in kidney donation?

In a commentary in Le Monde — France’s daily newspaper — Margot Lherbet, PharmD, and Samir Hamamah, MD, PhD, both from Montpellier University Hospital, Montpellier, France, together with François Olivennes, MD, PhD, a Paris-based reproductive medicine specialist, emphasized that from a medical standpoint, surrogacy and uterine transplantation (UTx) remain the only options for women with absolute uterine infertility, a condition that makes pregnancy impossible. In France, they observed, surrogacy triggers more ethical and moral objections than UTx, even though transplantation is far from risk free. The French Biomedicine Agency has already authorized multiple UTx procedures without major controversy, despite the fact that these involve living organ donation, lifelong immunosuppressive therapy, and eventual removal of the transplanted uterus. The authors argued that this contrast in attitudes stems largely from symbolic representations of motherhood.

They further emphasized that the debate should keep the surrogate woman at the center, rather than framing the issue exclusively through Western moral values. In France, the controversy reflects a familiar clash between the principle of human dignity and the right to individual bodily autonomy. Internationally, however, including in French social sciences, the discussion is often more pragmatic — focusing on the material and social conditions that shape women’s choices to become surrogates, rather than on the intrinsic morality of the practice itself.

Fragility of Safeguards

Philosophical reflections on surrogacy, while important, can seem utopian when the risk for commodification — of both women and children — remains very real.

Foreign examples of so-called “ethical” surrogacy are not necessarily reassuring. Siry-Houari has pointed out that in countries such as the UK, where only altruistic surrogacy is permitted, debates increasingly focus on allowing some level of commercialization because of a shortage of women willing to act as surrogates. She argued that ethical frameworks are difficult to sustain when supply cannot meet demand. In a globalized market, many couples turn abroad for surrogacy — either because domestic options are restricted or because conditions elsewhere appear more favorable. For example, many Americans seek arrangements in Ukraine, where clinics operate with minimal regulation, even though surrogacy is already legal in the US.

These examples underscore how fragile safeguards can be, reinforcing the principle that protecting women and children should allow for no exceptions.

The United Nation’s (UN’s) Position

The political initiative on surrogacy led by Attal is unfolding in a complex landscape. In addition to philosophical, medical, and legal debates — including studies suggesting that children born through surrogacy do not face major additional health risks — French lawmakers may now have to consider a new UN report. Presented to the UN General Assembly on July 14 and scheduled for full debate in the autumn session, the report recommends ending surrogacy in all forms, including arrangements described as “ethical.” It concludes that surrogacy inevitably involves the commodification and objectification of women and children. This development could significantly complicate Attal’s effort to advance a national debate on the issue.

This story was translated from JIM.