WHAT SURROGACY LAW SAYS

When a child is born its mother under English law is considered to be the woman who carried the infant through pregnancy, in this case Katherine

If she is married her husband is considered the legal father – which means the intended father, in this instance Paul, has no automatic claim to legal parenthood. If she is unmarried it is possible for the genetic father to be considered a legal parent

The surrogate is responsible for registering the birth, so her name and that of the legal father will go on the birth certificate

A ‘parental order’, made possible by the 2008 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act, can then transfer full parental status to the intended parents

This cannot happen until a child is six weeks old, but must do before they are six months, and strict conditions must be met

One is that no money must be paid by the wouldbe parents to the natural mum or to an agency, except for legitimate expenses

Applicants for the parental order must be husband and wife, a married same-sex couple, civil partners or in a long-term relationship