Surrogate mother of Sir Elton John’s second baby receives £20,000
Sir Elton John and David Furnish reportedly paid £20,000 to the surrogate mother of their new son, Elijah Joseph Daniel Furnish-John, as part of a fixed contractual fee with their Los Angeles-based surrogacy centre.
The Sun pointed out that as Sir Elton makes an estimated £70,000 a day from royalties it was a relatively small sum to pay for bringing a new child into the family.
The cost to be paid to the mother was stipulated by the Centre for Surrogate Parenting, which acts as an agency between potential surrogates and those hoping to become parents. In accordance with the centre’s rules, Sir Elton and Mr Furnish paid £17,340 for Zachary, £20,000 for Elijah, and would pay £21,675 for a third child, if it was carried by the same woman.
The strict rules regarding the cost of surrogacy are in place to prevent special treatment being given to wealthier clients. The surrogate mothers also receive payments for expenses incurred during pregnancy, and are paid an extra £2,500 if a caesarian section is required.
It also requires the women who work through it to be physically fit, non-smokers, and already raising a child of their own.
A source from the centre said: “[The surrogates] do it so they can bring joy and light to married and gay couples who wouldn’t otherwise be able to have children.”
Sir Elton said last week that “The birth of our second son completes our family in a most precious and perfect way. It is difficult to fully express how we are feeling at this time; we are just overwhelmed with happiness and excitement.”
The couple have said that they wish to respect the privacy of the surrogate, who has become a family friend, by not revealing her identity; Mr Furnish is listed as the mother on Elijah’s birth certificate.
An earlier headline in this story was incorrect, PinkNews apolgises for any offence caused.
