The Government’s decision to fund infertility treatment will relieve some of the pressure on women who already face a hugely stressful and emotional journey, a leading support group has claimed.

Leading fertility experts have clashed over the merits of social egg-freezing, with one doctor warning women against wasting their money on trying to have a baby in this way.

Claims that a breakthrough in infertility treatment can treble the chances of a successful birth have been dismissed as “ridiculous” by the vice-president of the Irish Fertility Society.

An expert in assisted human reproduction has told the High Court the failure by Government to introduce legislation is “very disappointing” and “tragic”.

Italian gynaecologist Severino Antinori grabbed headlines in the ’90s when he used IVF and egg donation to help menopausal women get pregnant — in 1993, a 59-year-old from Britain gave birth to twins.

A SUPREME Court ruling that frozen embryos do not have an automatic right to life will not lead to wholesale destruction of stored embryos, according to the fertility clinic at the centre of the ruling.

IRELAND risks a landmark custody battle involving babies born to couples who participated in an egg or sperm donation programme because the legal status of such children is unclear, a fertility expert warned yesterday.

EITHER partner in a couple undergoing fertility treatment should have the right to back out of the arrangement if they change their mind, a group representing fertility practitioners said.

A MOTHER whose daughter died as a result of fertility treatment complications protested with family and friends outside the venue of the inaugural meeting of the Irish Fertility Society yesterday.