German centre-right politician Jens Spahn has resigned as parliamentary group leader of the country’s governing coalition after being accused of hypocrisy over his use of a surrogate mother in the US to have a child.

Surrogacy is prohibited in Germany – a policy backed by his Christian Democrat party (CDU) and, several years ago, by Spahn himself – although raising a child born to a surrogate mother abroad is not.

He wrote in a statement on Saturday: “I have realised that my personal happiness – founding a family together with my husband and becoming a father – is not compatible with my political office.”

Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who leads the CDU, called his decision “right” and “inevitable”.

“Credibility is the highest asset in politics,” he wrote on social media, and said he would begin the process of appointing Spahn’s replacement.

The 46-year-old former health minister revealed earlier this week that he and his husband Daniel Funke had become parents, with their use of a surrogate abroad prompting criticism from politicians from several parties, including his own.

Announcing his resignation on Saturday, Spahn wrote: “The balancing act between my private decision to have a child through surrogacy and the understandable expectations placed on me as Chairman of our parliamentary group has become greater than I anticipated,” he added.

He also said the “increasing relentlessness in public discourse” had given him “deep pause for thought”.

“Despite all clarity and decisiveness regarding the issues, let us always remain human in our tone,” he wrote.

German media reported Alexander Hoffmann, head of the Christian Social Union parliamentary group, would take over Spahn’s duties until a successor was chosen.

Hoffmann said: “Jens Spahn’s decision deserves the utmost respect.”

The CDU signed a resolution reaffirming its support for a ban on surrogacy in February. As health minister in 2020, Spahn had rejected calls by the liberal FDP for the ban to be relaxed.

In 2015, he wrote that “as a gay man and a Christian I find it personally very hard to warm to the idea of a rented womb”.

Surrogacy in Germany is punishable with three years imprisonment or a fine, rendering surrogacy abroad an important option for many couples.