Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am very happy to see the much anticipated and long-awaited Children and Family Relationships Bill reach the floor of the House today. I am only sorry it has taken so long to get here. As we all know, this Bill is the biggest change to family law in the State's history, finally taking account of the diversity of modern Irish families, and this can only be celebrated. The reality of an Irish family in 2015 is very different to what we traditionally viewed as a family, and it is time that we overhauled our family law to reflect this. Children should never be punished because of the circumstances of their birth or the marital status of their parents. Unfortunately, until the publication of this Bill, they have been. All children deserve to be fully valued and to have equal rights. Sinn Féin will be supporting this Bill and we commend the Minister on getting it here today. We will have some amendments on Committee Stage that we hope will strengthen what we see as some of the weaker areas of the Bill.

From the outset, I challenge the attempts by some to label this Bill as the "gay adoption Bill". This is a mischievous disservice to what is a pretty comprehensive overhaul of family law. Single persons who are gay or lesbian have been able to adopt children for many years now, and the Children and Family Relationship Bill just ensures that in the case of same-sex relationships, both parents of the child have guardianship rights and that the child has the same rights as any other. The failure to recognise the diversity of family life in Ireland has had a serious impact on the lives of children. In the Ireland of 2015, children are being increasingly cared for by unmarried parents, step-parents, civil partners and others acting in loco parentis, such as grandparents. As it stands, the law does not always provide a mechanism whereby such relationships with the child are recognised. The problems this can cause on a daily basis are significant and affect deeply the quality of care these children can be given. For example, step-parents living with the child cannot consent to medical treatment or grant permission for school trips, and the lack of legal clarity can be particularly detrimental to a child in the context of a family breakdown, where the child does not have any formal link or ties to the person considered to be the parent.

I am pleased to see that the Bill recognises the reality of diverse family types and forms in this State today. The impact that this will then have on the lives of thousands of children and their families is incredibly positive. With this Bill, we need to ensure that a child's right to family life is protected. Bunreacht Na hÉireann places a great importance on the family, defining it in Article 41 as "the natural primary and fundamental unit group of Society". However, the Courts have interpreted the "constitutional family" as only referring to marital families. Irish law currently does not provide anywhere near adequate legal structures for protecting the right to family life for the significant number of children in non-marital families. This is simply not acceptable and it is not fair. Where is the equality in that?

We are thankful that this Bill will mean that children living in non-marital and non-traditional families will be in a position to enjoy a legal relationship with the person who provides them with day-to-day parental care, whoever that may be. We are also pleased to see contained within the Bill a comprehensive definition of the "best interests" principle in line with Article 3 of the United Nations Charter on the Rights of the Child. This is most welcome in terms of providing guidance for the Judiciary, and it promotes consistency in application. We are also welcoming of the fact that the Bill will ensure that a child's voice is heard and considered when important or life-changing decisions are made with regard to guardianship, custody and access. Section 32 of Part V of the Bill empowers the court to appoint an expert to ascertain the child's views in proceedings on guardianship, custody and access where the child is not able to express his or her views directly. We believe in the importance of the participation of children in judicial decision-making and are very much in favour of the appointment of an expert to ensure this.

We are disappointed that a number of issues do not feature in the Bill. Sinn Féin would like to see the establishment of a central register for statutory declarations for joint guardianship to provide protection for the statutory declaration documents which grant guardianship rights to unmarried fathers in respect of their children. We also would support the establishment of a comprehensive court welfare service to support the roll-out of this legislation. This service would provide an appropriate mechanism to carry out assessments of the child's welfare and best interests and ascertain his or her views while also carrying out family risk assessments. It would also ensure, where appropriate, that supports and services would be available to the child and family, such as mediation services and child contact centres.

I have already expressed concern about some aspects of the Bill, and I would like to raise these again today. I have a worry regarding the cohabitation section, whereby a father living with the child's mother for 12 consecutive months, including at least three months with the mother and the child following the child's birth, will automatically become a guardian. As the Minister knows, in some cases this is simply not possible.

Sometimes mothers are still living with their parents, and it is not always appropriate or indeed possible for the father to live there also. This is often the case with teenage or unplanned pregnancies. It does not always mean that the father is shirking his responsibilities or not stepping up to the plate; the circumstances are just not in his favour. What about all the fathers who are working away from home, perhaps abroad, and who must do so simply to be in a financial position to support the child?

There is nothing substantial in the Bill for unmarried fathers aside from cohabiting for the requisite amount of time. Everybody else will continue to be obliged to resort to the courts if the mother does not agree to sign a statutory declaration for joint guardianship witnessed by a peace commissioner or a commissioner for oaths. I have read a number of articles on this in recent days, and there was an excellent article by the columnist Colette Browne in the Irish Independentin which she outlines the issue of the father's right to equality in parenthood with the mother from the start.

Sadly, there are men who do not step up to the plate. Of course, they will not seek a declaration of parenthood and guardianship, and hopefully they will be pursued for maintenance to meet their responsibilities. However, if a father steps up to the plate from the start, he is entitled to equality of parenthood from the start. If it transpires that he is not meeting his responsibilities - for example, if there is domestic abuse or he is not a fit father - that would matter. I firmly believe that the father and the mother should be given equal status in law as parents and equal guardianship from the beginning, and I will table amendments to achieve that. What is provided for in the Bill in terms of conditionality is not equality of parenthood. Perhaps the Minister would take the time to read the article I mentioned, although she might have already done so. It is a very good contribution to the debate and I hope she will consider it. In line with other jurisdictions such as Northern Ireland, Britain, many European countries and Australia, unmarried fathers should have automatic rights to their children when registering the birth. I will certainly seek to strengthen this area of the legislation.

There are questions about how the new laws will work in practice. Will the courts be sufficiently equipped and supported to hear very complex family law cases? How will low-income families who do not qualify for legal aid be able to use the courts? I have some concerns about how aspects of the Bill can be implemented given the serious resource restrictions that exist, the lack of consistency and specialist knowledge that can characterise some family law proceedings and the requirement to hear children's voices. I am generally concerned about the way family law is dealt with by the current court system, a system that is in serious need of overhaul. The days when children and parents are huddled into packed court waiting rooms along with other citizens who are there for civil cases must end. A dedicated and fully resourced family law court system, backed up by a comprehensive court welfare service, is required.

Of course, the long-awaited publication of the Mediation Bill and its progression through these Houses would be of immense value to families enduring separation and divorce, and not just in terms of legal costs. The ability to resolve the issues in dispute in a non-adversarial environment rather than using the blunt instrument of an adversarial courtroom must be encouraged and facilitated more than is the case at present. While mediation is currently available, too few families are availing of this option. The two persons separating should be required to attend an information session on the mediation process before their case can be accepted by a registrar or heard by a court.

I also have concerns about the public's perceptions of rights in this area. In the experience of my office, many parents mistakenly believe that having a father's name on a birth certificate gives him guardianship rights. This misinformation has major adverse consequences for children. Will the Minister consider rolling out a public information programme about guardianship? This is an area where there appears to be widespread confusion among many of our citizens. There is regularly communication with our office from people, particularly fathers, who are unsure as to what rights they have or where they should go to find information. I appeal to the Minister to allocate resources to ensure that more people are made aware of the rights they have in terms of guardianship, particularly as family life in Ireland is so different from how it once was. We must make this information as accessible and widely available as possible. Information should be provided to all unmarried fathers mandatorily at the time of birth registration. If this included the legal position of unmarried fathers and the lack of rights for non-cohabiting unmarried fathers, it would remove much of the confusion.

I commend the Minister and all those who worked with her on this Bill. These proposals, if enacted, will improve the lives of many people and, most importantly, the lives of many children. The Children and Family Relationships Bill is long overdue, but it will move us closer than ever towards protecting all children in Irish society as they should be protected. It is imperative that we get this legislation right. I and my party are happy to work with the Minister to ensure this. There are too many vulnerable children and families depending on this legislation to get it wrong.

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