German center-right politician Jens Spahn has resigned as head of the parliamentary group of conservatives, the ruling coalition in Germany, following accusations of hypocrisy over using a surrogate mother in the US to have a child.
Surrogacy is banned in Germany, a policy supported by his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and one that Spahn himself supported several years ago, although raising a child born via surrogacy abroad is not prohibited.
In a statement released today, he wrote: „I have realized that my personal happiness, to start a family together with my husband and become a father, is not compatible with my political calling,“ reports the BBC.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz, head of the CDU, called his decision „correct“ and „inevitable.“
„Credibility is the greatest value in politics,“ Merz wrote on social media, adding that the process of appointing Spahn’s replacement would begin.
Spahn (46) revealed earlier this week that he and his husband Daniel Funke had become parents using a surrogate mother abroad, which sparked criticism from politicians in several parties, including his own.
Announcing his resignation today, Spahn wrote: „Balancing my private decision to have a child via surrogacy and the understandable expectations of me as chairman of our parliamentary group has become greater than I expected.“
He said that the „increasing intransigence in public discourse“ had led him to deep reflection.
„Regardless of all the clarity and determination on the issue, we should always remain humane in our tone,“ he wrote.
German media reported that Alexander Hoffmann, head of the parliamentary group of the Christian Social Union (CSU), will take over Spahn’s duties as head of the CDU and CSU parliamentary group until his successor is chosen.
Hoffmann said that Spahn’s decision deserves the utmost respect.
Under the Embryo Protection Act of 1990, surrogacy in Germany is punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine.
For many German couples, both same-sex and heterosexual, resorting to surrogacy abroad has become an important option.
Spahn’s party signed a resolution in February reaffirming support for the ban on the practice in Germany itself, in order to „prevent the emergence of commercial and neutral models that turn surrogacy into a business model.“
Spahn’s critics have reminded that, when he was health minister in 2020, he rejected calls from the liberal FDP to ease the ban on surrogacy in Germany.
„As a gay man and a Christian, I personally find it very difficult to warm up to the idea of a rented womb,“ Spahn wrote in 2015.
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