First baby born from sperm bought over the internet

The birth of the first baby in Britain conceived from sperm bought over the internet was announced yesterday by a website set up to cater to lesbian women.

ManNotIncluded.com, the website that arranged the cyber-sperm donation, said the healthy 10lb 2oz boy had been born in the past few days. Family campaigners and health experts have condemned the site, which they say carries medical and moral risks.

Despite the website being marketed at lesbian and single women, its first baby has been born to a married, heterosexual couple. The family, who come from the South-east of England, insist on remaining anonymous. Mother and child are said to be doing well.

ManNotIncluded has been at the centre of controversy since it was launched last year. The site charges for access to a list of 5,000 anonymous sperm donors, with details of their ethnicity, height, characteristics and qualifications. Women pay £1,200 for fresh samples of selected sperm to be delivered to their home for self-insemination. The buying process can be conducted online without even a phone call to the internet site or the need for a doctor.

It is the first such website to operate in Britain. Medical experts say it is dangerous because a loophole in the law means it is not regulated by the fertility watchdog, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA). Fresh sperm donation is not covered by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990, so ManNotIncluded is not required to hold an operating licence from the HFEA or abide by its strict rules on screening samples for potentially fatal infections.

HFEA guidelines recommend donated sperm should be quarantined for at least 180 days to detect any infections. Some diseases, such as HIV, have an incubation period of up to three months, meaning fresh sperm could be donated and infection not picked up in tests. The HFEA has also warned that men who donate fresh sperm to such sites risk being sued for maintenance.

Men who donate to licensed clinics are not regarded as the legal parents of any children they father, and therefore cannot be pursued for money. But donors to unlicensed clinics may not be entitled to the same legal exemption.

Suzi Leather, chairwoman of the HFEA, said: "The HFEA cannot guarantee good laboratory practices and safe testing of donated sperm from unlicensed donation services. Women wishing to use donated sperm are advised to do so through an HFEA licensed clinic where donated sperm is thoroughly tested and legal parentage is set down in law."

John Gonzalez, founder of the website, said all donors were subject to rigorous testing and the company abided by HFEA regulations although it was not regulated by the watchdog. He said the site offered the chance of motherhood to lesbian and single women who might be turned down for treatment at traditional clinics.

Why the married couple turned to the website is not clear, although it is cheaper than conventional IVF, which costs £2,500 for each attempt. Mr Gonzalez said: "We are delighted at the fantastic news that the first baby has been born as a direct result of using our ground-breaking service. MNI is about giving all women the chance to have children without fear of prejudice or discrimination." He says a further 13 lesbians are pregnant, and 3,000 more women have registered on his website.

Robert Whelan, director of the pressure group Family and Youth Concern said: "This is an appalling indictment of our consumer society. You should not be able to order children off the internet, as if they are just goods. It is a form of eugenics and it is frankly terrifying."