The short version
- Venstre puts forward parliamentary proposals to, among other things, allow surrogacy in Norway.
- The purpose is to give more people the opportunity to have children, and to improve the offer of infertility treatment.
- Anna Kvarme (16) and father Geir Kvarme think the proposal is positive.
Sea view
Fewer children are born in Norway than ever before, and it is more difficult for some groups to have children than others. Involuntary childlessness is increasing, and the Liberal Party wants to do something about this.
– We want to give more people the opportunity to have children in Norway, says Ane Breivik, leader of Unge Venstre.
On Thursday morning, Breivik tabled a parliamentary proposal regarding the following for the government:
- The Storting asks the government to allow simultaneous egg and sperm donation, so-called embryo donation, for singles and couples.
- The Storting asks the government to review the offer of infertility treatment to ensure that it is real, equal and accessible.
- The Storting asks the government to investigate the regulation of non-commercial surrogacy in Norway.
- The Storting asks the government to review the legal protection of children born to surrogate mothers abroad, with the aim of strengthening children’s rights.
– The time has come to make surrogacy legal in Norway. There are many people in Norway today who use surrogate mothers abroad for various reasons, says Breivik.
Anne Breivik
Leader of Young Liberals
– The typical thing is the absence of a uterus in a couple. It can be caused by medical complications, illness or the fact that there are two men who want to have children.
Breivik says she is aware that there are several ethical considerations that must be considered if Norway is to open up surrogacy.
Surrogacy is illegal in Norway
Paragraph 2 of the Children’s Act states that “an agreement to give birth to a child for another woman is not binding”. According to the Biotechnology Act, fertilized eggs “cannot be inserted into the uterus of a woman other than the woman from whom the egg cell originates.”
Sea view
– Of course something I think about
Anna Kvarme (16) has a twin sister and two fathers. She has known about how she came to be ever since she was old enough to understand.
– Being born via a surrogate mother is of course something I think about, but not all the time. I always knew how I came to be. Having two fathers is something that stands out a little in our society, although it has become much more normalized only since we went to primary school, says Kvarme.
– Then me and my sister could get questions from other children, but not anymore, she says.
PROUD: – Becoming a father is the biggest role I’ve ever had, says actor Geir Kvarme. The family picture is from May 2022. From left: Sebastian, Nola, Anna and Geir. Photo: Private
Actor Geir Kvarme and her husband Sebastian Sundberg Kvarme became parents to twin daughters Nola and Anna in 2007. They were born via surrogacy in California.
– Becoming a father is the biggest role I have ever had. It is a very big responsibility and sometimes I feel like a complete failure. But all in all, I’m incredibly glad we did it. That those were the two we got, he says.
– We are like a completely normal family
Anna is 16 years old and attends high school in Oslo. Growing up in Oslo with two fathers, she describes as open, happy and completely normal.
– I had a very nice childhood, and I appreciate my dad and father so much. The older I get, the more I realize how much they have done for us. They always try to do the best for me and my sister, says Anna.
– They support us in everything, all the time. And then we argue and discuss like everyone else. We are like a completely normal family.
VERY NICE CHILDHOOD: – The older I get, the more I realize how much they have done for us. They always try to do the best for me and my sister, says Anna about the fathers. Photo: Private
Anna says that she has strong female role models in her family and among her friends. She has never missed having a mother, she says.
– I don’t know about anything else. It’s a bit like asking a little sister what it’s like to have an older brother, says Anna and laughs.
The 16-year-old believes the Liberal Party’s proposal to allow surrogacy in Norway is positive.
– I think it can help Norway to gain a better understanding that children can be fine even if they have two gay fathers or mothers. In Norway, I think we have the opportunity to regulate it so well that all parties are taken into account.
She adds:
– I think it is important that Norway opens up to it. It can create more transparency around surrogacy, and we need more children.
NEWBORN: Here, Nola (tv) and Anna are only 10 days old, says Kvarme. Photo: Private
– A womb has never sung a night song
Geir Kvarme believes that it is entirely possible to regulate the surrogacy process so that the interests of all parties involved are taken into account.
The strong desire many people have to become parents must be taken seriously, especially since more children will be born in Norway, believes Kvarme, who emphasizes that he does not know Venstre’s proposal in detail.
– If Norway is to be concerned about more children being born, then I think we should give the opportunity to those who want it. A womb has never sung a night song. As a parent, it is you who plasters wounds and takes part in football training. It is your intention to be a parent of a child that counts the most, Kvarme believes.
DAD AND FATHER: Geir Kvarme (tv) with Anna on his lap, and Sebastian Sundberg Kvarme with Nola. The picture was taken in 2014 on the Greek island of Koufunisia. Photo: Private
Kvarme points to studies which has been done to show that children born through surrogacy are just as good in their families as other children. His daughters are now 16 years old.
– If you think about it from a societal level, it is a resource for Norway that we got these two. It is a direct subsidy to what Norway is asking for, and we have to balance that against opposition, says Kvarme and continues:
– Who has been the injured party in that we had the children? Society, the children themselves, or she who gave birth to them? I would like to be pointed out where the alleged damage by having our children through surrogacy has occurred. Would it be better if they had never been born?
POSITIVE: – Part of the regulation in Norway can also be to create approval schemes for those processes abroad that live up to the ethical standards that the Norwegian political and professional authorities believe are necessary, says Kvarme. Photo: Gøran Bohlin / VG
When the daughters were only four years old, a letter arrived from the Norwegian authorities stating that the family was dissolved and canceled in the population register.
Children who had two fathers and no mother were incompatible with Norwegian law. After a two-year struggle, the children were given legal affiliation with Kvarme and her husband, and registered parental responsibility.
– Even though we are two men, we are exactly the same as others in the basic matter of being parents.
Kvarme emphasizes that surrogacy is not unproblematic, and that careful ethical assessments must be made before it is possibly allowed in Norway.
– I also want to highlight the importance and necessity of children’s right to know their genesis. It is inevitable for me.
Unge Venstre: – The desire to have children is very great for many
Young Venstre leader Breivik is aware that there are several ethical considerations that must be considered if Norway is to open up surrogacy.
She is nevertheless determined that Norwegian women should be able to decide over their own bodies, and that the state should not make the choice for them.
– The desire to have children is very great for many, and I think we should facilitate this to a greater extent as a society. Allowing this in Norway will mean that fewer people use surrogacy abroad, and that we can be more confident that everyone involved in the process will be taken care of when it takes place on Norwegian soil.