Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)

I thank the Minister for her response as this is a very important issue and I am pleased to know the Minister intends to address it by way of legislation. My concern would be with regard to the timescale and the emphasis. I have heard the Minister speaking on the radio on this subject and her input has tended to be on the basis of looking at the issue from the point of view of the adoptive parents perhaps rather than the rights of the child. There has to be a balance of rights. However I refer to the rights of the children who were illegally adopted in this State - a figure which is reckoned in tens of thousands. This is a crime which people have spent their lifetimes trying to address. The present situation has a number of anomalies which require to be urgently addressed. For example, if an adoption body is not accredited, it is a private body and nobody has any control of what happens the files of such a body. These could be burned at any time which would destroy the identities of people who have been adopted and such a body would be free from prosecution. This situation must be addressed as a matter of urgency. Many of these files are all over the place and we need urgent action to ensure they are collected and held in a central place and properly audited and stored so that they are accessible. I ask the Minister to indicate the timescale for this process and to say what powers are being considered in this regard. Information and tracing is crucial for the citizens involved.

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