Dinny McGinley (Donegal South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am taking this issue on behalf of the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald. The adoption process, in Ireland and worldwide, has undergone a great deal of change recently. The primary catalyst for this change has been worldwide efforts to adhere to the principles of the Hague Convention on adoption. In Ireland, this change can be attributed to comprehensive amendment of our adoption legislation that was initiated not only in an effort to prepare for Ireland's 2010 ratification of the Hague Convention but also in an effort to consolidate the existing legislation and to reflect social change that had taken place since the implementation of the original 1952 Adoption Act.

The rigours of the Hague Convention, and the Adoption Authority of Ireland's compliance with that convention have been demonstrated, as membership of the convention is a mechanism for improving standards in inter-country adoption. All players in the adoption process now have a responsibility to ensure that child-centred adoption is the core of all the elements of the adoption process. This will change the adoption landscape and will also require Irish adopters and, possibly, prospective adopters in our neighbouring European countries to adjust and, perhaps, change their expectations.

The implementation of the Hague Convention by sending countries has inevitably led to a change in the timescale for adoption and also to the age and needs of children available for adoption. If the core Hague principles such as informed and considered parental consent and subsidiarity in the adoption processes are adhered to, the timescale for adoption and the age and needs profile of children who become eligible for adoption must also change.

The expiration of declarations of eligibility and suitability, DES, is covered under section 41(1) of the Adoption Act 2010. The section provides that a DES expires after 24 months from the date of issuance of the declaration, or after a further period of not more than 12 months that the Adoption Authority may specify. The Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, understands that at the time of drafting of the legislation, it was felt that this provided an adequate period, following the initial assessment of applicants, to complete an adoption. Given the changing landscape of inter-country adoption, this may no longer be the case.

The Minister is examining a number of proposals in respect of amendments to the Adoption Act 2010, and intends to bring forward any changes to the legislation in conjunction with the draft adoption (information and tracing) Bill 2013 which it is proposed to bring before the Oireachtas in the coming months. However, any change to the length of validity of a declaration must be weighed up against the necessity to ensure that an applicant's current situation in regard to suitability to adopt is taken into account in the adoption process.

In regard to choice of country, the Minister is aware of the difficulty this issue causes for potential adoptive parents. The Minister has visited Vietnam, with which Ireland has an administrative arrangement, and it is anticipated that adoptions will commence from Vietnam in the coming months. In mid-March the Minister also visited India and gained clarification on a number of issues to allow for inter-country adoption between Ireland and India to commence. The Adoption Authority of Ireland will also finalise administrative arrangements in the coming weeks with the USA.

As part of the assessment process in respect of an application for a declaration of eligibility and suitability to adopt, applicants are required to select a country from which they would like to adopt. They must research the country and the specific needs in regard to adopting a child from this country.

The social worker assesses applicants with reference to the known needs of children from different countries and the specific capacities of these particular applicants to meet the needs of a child adopted from this area. Following the issuance of a declaration to adopt, should applicants wish to change to another country, they may contact their social worker for an updated assessment in this regard.

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