Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy McGinley, for coming to the Chamber to address the issue I raise concerning Irish couples who seek international adoptions and the difficulties present in the existing system. To begin, I offer some background. Irish people who wish to become adoptive parents rightly must go through a rigorous approval programme as part of an international commitment Ireland made as a signatory to international agreements on this issue. As part of the criteria required, such couples must complete forms in order to get Garda clearance and medical and financial approval. They are also required to attend an adoptive preparation course because the children they adopt may be from a different jurisdiction and there are certain requirements with regard to cultural necessities which must also be addressed. Garda and other clearances are valid for a year only but may be repeated. Applicants must select a single country from which they wish to adopt. I will return to the particular problem of the singe country approach. If the couple are deemed eligible and suitable, they are given a declaration of eligibility and suitability and go on a waiting list. The declaration of eligibility and suitability is valid for two years only, although in exceptional circumstances a one year extension may be granted. However, if a suitable adoption cannot be completed within this time, the whole cycle must be restarted and the adoptive parents must go through the process again from the beginning.

I offer some examples of the current situation in Ireland among couples waiting to adopt a child. The information given to me indicates that five couples are awaiting Indian adoptions since 2010, in Bulgaria there is a waiting time of more than three years, and in the Philippines 21 Irish couples are on a waiting list, a number for more than two years. One couple currently going through an assessment process has no country available to them although they have had a declaration since 2011.

I have something to propose today for the Minister of State to take on board, although I do not ask him to give me a determinate and substantive reply today, and I acknowledge that some of the information I may give him is new to his ears. I would be grateful, however, if he would return to the Ministers for Health and Children and Youth Affairs with this issue. Further detail can be supplied if required. I propose that the validity period of the declaration of eligibility and suitability be increased to four years, with the possibility of a one year extension, or to allow for a reduced assessment if such must be repeated. Rather than have the period of two years end with the couple obliged to commence the cycle again, there might be a system of minor adjustment or assessment that would continue for another two years. The reason I ask this is that the waiting time for inter-country adoptions has increased to more than three years and most applicants expect to be assessed twice as standard practice under the existing regime.

There is a second issue involved. The adoptive parent is rightly required to demonstrate sensitivity to the culture and ethos of a child's birth country, because of the international context. However, applicants must choose a single country. If a child is being adopted from India or parents wish to adopt an Indian child, there is a single application whereby the cultural focus is on India. The difficulty is that the declaration is also valid for only one country. It is not the case that a couple can hope to adopt a child from India, Bulgaria or wherever. They are locked into one country, which limits their options, especially if a difficulty arises. This has been indicated at present in the case of Russia, where certain civil and human rights issues have been raised and President Putin has indicated he will cut off adoption ties to countries that have signed the signatory process.

I request two changes. First, that applicants be permitted to choose more than one country at a time or to be able to move between countries. Sometimes countries suspend adoptions, even for valid reasons. Second, recognition should be given to candidates who are capable of appreciating more than one country at a time and who would be most likely to succeed with a valid declaration if they were given a greater choice.

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