"A greater onus of proof that a mother has consented"
Reports in today’s media are already predicting the outcomes of the ongoing federal government inquiry into surrogacy, suggesting that Australian couples may be banned from accessing surrogates overseas in a bid to prevent the exploitation of vulnerable women. Although the committee into surrogacy is only expected to hand down its findings to the government in the first week of May, reports are already suggesting that new measures may include compulsory interviews with surrogacy candidates, to be conducted by Australian government officials, with an effort to ensure that surrogates have given proper informed consent and received appropriate compensation. I do find these reports extremely curious, given that submissions only closed a few weeks ago and the inquiry is ongoing, and there is no reported source for these reports.
For more information, you can read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/2016/03/30/13/15/australian-couples-could-be-banned-from-using-surrogates-in-eastern-europe-and-southeast-asia#kUxdUZxImkt3Igpz.99.