Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)

I move amendment No. 17:

In page 22, line 18, after "not" to insert ", unless a finding of parentage in relation to the child has been made, ".

Amendments Nos. 17 and 18 are similar and vary only in a small point of punctuation. This amendment does not go far enough in meeting the serious flaws in this section. As the Bill is written, a father who is not married to the mother of his child is given the impression that he need not, and should not, give his personal details when the child is being registered. This is one of several amendments which will try to tackle the remaining inconsistencies in this section.

The wording of my amendment has been suggested by the Law Society. It attempts to tackle the first element of the problem, where the Bill appears to allow a father who is not married to the mother of his child to avoid responsibility. I hope the effect of this amendment will be further improved upon by the acceptance of further amendments which deal with the difference between the words "person" and "father".

The Bill places an excessive reliance on the Status of Children Act 1987 in providing such information subsequently. This method of seeking information is long and tortuous and the information received after a successful court challenge relates mainly to maintenance payments and an acceptance of parentage, not to the provision of the details children should have about their identity and parentage.

On those grounds I move this initial amendment and I hope the Minister will accept this and further amendments.

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