Cash for eggs: there are so many issues

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Fertility and its management is always an emotive subject that polarises opinion. The views of the public are currently being sought on surrogacy - in the spotlight again following Nicole Kidman's announcement that her second daughter was carried this way - as well as the use of donor eggs and sperm to enable infertile couples to have a baby. More ethical issues are being explored, including whether close relatives should donate eggs or sperm to each other, and if it is acceptable for a baby to be born, through egg donation, to a woman who is also its grandmother.

The debate follows a high court ruling that may have opened the way for surrogate mothers to be paid, a practice which had been banned. If the public concede, then women could be set to receive thousands of pounds for donating their eggs. Currently, British clinics are banned from paying for eggs and sperm directly but can pay up to £250 in expenses - which hasn't exactly filled potential donors with a desire to go through with the process of donation.

The problem with the "cash for eggs" proposal will not be with the well-meaning majority but the unscrupulous few, who will lure in women by making egg donation seem like an easy way to earn money - without any explanation of what actually is involved. Worrying, too, is the possibility of "designer genes" being offered to couples prepared to pay exorbitant fees for the perfect combination of brains and beauty; the higher your exam marks and the better your bone structure, the more your eggs could be worth.

I'm not sure money is the main issue, however. While it's mainly the small amount of cash currently offered to donors that has been blamed for the shortage of eggs, I suspect a greater problem is the recent change in UK law which requires the identity of sperm or egg donors to be revealed to their children - the idea of a load of "surprise" children showing up years after donation undoubtedly puts off many would-be donors.

Maybe the issue is being looked at from the wrong angle, in London at least. The stats for maternal age show that in the UK London has the lowest number of births per 1,000 women aged 25 to 29, and the highest birth rate for women aged 35 to 39. This implies London women are leaving pregnancy until much later, a known risk for fertility issues and the need for donor eggs or even surrogacy. Many have argued that more should be done to cure infertility and to encourage women to have children when they are young and their eggs are still in good condition, instead of worrying about turning body parts into tradable commodities.