Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am glad the Minister has confirmed this is not something I am bringing up afresh today but is a matter I have highlighted and raised repeatedly in recent years. The Adoption Rights Alliance firmly believes there is a deliberate strategy on the part of the Government "to deny until we die". The alliance is firmly of that belief and has received no correspondence from the Minister's office since September 2013. The Minister has stated continually that her proposed legislation must be compatible with the Constitution. There is nothing new there, as all legislation must be compatible with the Constitution. However, the job of the Government is to legislate and in this regard, the Government is failing miserably. If the Attorney General is of the view that the Constitution is a roadblock to the publication of the information and tracing Bill, surely a proposal to amend the Constitution in this regard should have been put to the people at the time of the children's referendum? At present, the basic human right of any individual to know his or her identity is being denied. This right is outlined clearly in Articles 7 and 8 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and I ask the Minister to reply in this regard.

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