Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister, Deputy Katherine Zappone, on her appointment and wish her well in the task that lies ahead.

The Bill deals with the sensitive and difficult issues of adoption proceedings, adoption orders and adoption eligibility, but we all agree that the paramount concern must be the best interests of the child. Every child has an inalienable and now, constitutionally, enshrined right to be assured his or her best interests will always be the fundamental and sole concern in adoption cases. Furthermore, children's own wishes, desires and views on their best interest should be valued and, as far as possible, have a significant bearing on any court decision made.

One of the main tenets of the Constitution is that we must cherish children. Few matters can be of such importance to a child's welfare and well-being as those of custody, guardianship and adoption. It is a sign of how much our society has developed that we recognise in the Constitution and legislation giving effect to constitutional provisions that in fundamental matters of importance children have a right to form a view, have it heard and given due weight in cases that affect them.

The Bill brings clarity to adoption legislation and removes many outdated legal anomalies. In particular, it removes the condition that married parents may not voluntarily place their child for adoption and that a step-parent cannot adopt his or her partner's child without the requirement being met that the biological parent has apply to adopt his or her own child. The Bill also contains provisions giving legislative effect to the Family and Children Relationships Bill which provides for the adoption of a child by non-married couples, including civil partners and cohabiting couples.

The make-up of Irish family life has changed enormously and the Bill recognises these changes and allows for a wealth of diversity in Irish families. Census 2011 indicated that Irish families were increasingly diverse and that an increasing percentage of children were living in family types other than those headed by married parents. This change in the make-up of family life has occurred in every county in Ireland. Census data from 2011 showed that there were over 7,000 lone-parent households in County Kildare. The data also display 3,000 cohabiting couples with 11,114 children. The number of children living in households headed by cohabiting couples increased by 41% between 2006 and 2011. The Central Statistics Office's vital statistics data also indicate that in 2011 some 25,190 children were born outside marriage or civil partnerships. This number continues to increase year on year.

Fianna Fáil welcomes and fully supports this long overdue adoption legislation which gives legislative effect to the constitutional change which requires that the views of the child be heard and given due weight in adoption cases. Many children in long-term foster care have for many years held a strong desire to be adopted by their foster families, but they could not be adopted owing to the archaic provisions contained in adoption legislation which was more relevant to the 19th century than 21st century Ireland. Many thousands of children - close to 2,000 per year - have gone through the care system in the interim owing to this decision and have lost the benefit of being part of a family in the eyes of the law. One can only imagine the potentially harmful consequences this has had on their sense of belonging and home, their identity and rights to succession and inheritance. Up to 2,000 children could become eligible for adoption as a result of the change proposed in the legislation. However, the level of resources in place in the adoption system can only support a handful of children in progressing through the system on an annual basis. It is worrying that there is no resourcing plan in place to accompany this legislation. Unless resources are put in place in the adoption system, I worry that backlogs will impose another painful delay on the families involved and prevent children in foster care from progressing swiftly through the adoption process. If we consider the current long delays in the family courts, it is deeply worrying to think how they will be severely exacerbated by possibly thousands of new adoption cases. The absence of an aspiration on the part of the Government to establish new family courts is worrying. Without some reform in this area, there is little hope of alleviating the long delays in family law cases.

Another concern expressed relates to children's rights to information and to trace. It is strange that in Parts 2 and 3 of the recently commenced Children and Family Relationship Act 2015 there are explicit rights to access information and identity tracing for children conceived through donor-assisted human reproduction, yet adopted children are still waiting for a Bill to be published to provide a similar right in the context of adoption. This is lamentable, given all of the public attention this issue has received in the past few years and the tragic stories that have been uncovered. We must ensure in practice that children's views are heard and their best interests ascertained during adoption proceedings.

Currently, married couples cannot place their child for adoption. The Bill provides that married parents may place a child for adoption on a voluntary basis, where both parents place him or her for adoption and consent to the making of the adoption order. As Geoffrey Shannon, the Government's special rapporteur on child protection, said during the children's rights referendum, removing this archaic ban will help to stop children from drifting rudderless in the child protection system and allow many children in long-term foster care to be adopted. He said the amendment would give all children equal rights, no matter the status of their parents. Allowing for the adoption of marital children will end the legal limbo in which a significant number of children find themselves and which more would face in the future if this provision was to remain unchanged. It is important to stress that this will not in any way lead to more children entering the care system. Instead, it will lead to the right children entering the care system, which is what matters most.

The Bill provides for a change in the criteria under which the High Court may, in a case involving parental failure, make an order authorising, without parental consent, the adoption of a child who has been in the custody of and had a home with applicants such as foster parents or relatives for a period of at least 18 months. This amendment is not about removing children from their families and placing them in care. It is about ensuring those children in the care system will no longer be left to drift and will be given a second chance. The revised criteria are that the child must be in the custody of and have had a home with the applicants for a continuous period of not less than 18 months, that the High Court shall be satisfied that the parents of the child have failed in their duty towards him or her for a period of 36 months and that there is no reasonable prospect that they will be able to care for him or her in a manner that will not prejudicially affect his or her safety or welfare.

In recent months I have met families living in south Kildare where the children are caught up in complicated legal proceedings. These children have already had to endure very tough times and are still in a legal limbo, where after each court appearance they may be moved to a different address. I had the privilege to hear in depth about two cases where children had been fostered and with their foster families for a number of years. In both cases there is a desire on the part of the foster parents to adopt the children and on the part of the children to be legally part of the family.

6 o’clock

It is fabulous to see the love and opportunities these children are now experiencing after the turbulent early years they have had to endure. The Bill will allow adoptions such as these to take place and ensure a brighter future for these children.

Most significantly, the Bill provides that the best interests of the child are the paramount consideration in any application or proceedings under the Adoption Act 2010 and that the views of the child shall be ascertained by the Adoption Authority of Ireland or the court, as the case may be, and given due weight having regard to the age and maturity of the child. Surely this is what we strive for in every aspect of life and every piece of legislation before this House. The best interests of all children lie in ensuring every citizen is assured of safe, affordable housing and receives the best education, irrespective of his or her background. It is a fundamental duty of an elected representative to ensure that we always act in the best interests of all citizens and, in particular, invest in the future of generations to come.

The Bill provides for the adoption of a child by his or her step-parent without the requirement for the birth parent to adopt his or her own child. Previously, if a step-parent wanted to adopt, both the child's birth parent and step-parent had to apply to adopt. The birth parent became an adopting parent, but it is good that, under the Bill, the birth parent will continue to be the child's parent and the step-parent will be the adoptive parent. The Coalition for Mother and Baby Home Survivors, CMABS, referred to this anomalous law as ridiculous and woefully outdated. The Bill corrects this anomaly, introducing an amendment whereby the birth parent will continue to be the child's parent and the step-parent will be the adoptive parent.

Many elements of the Bill bring greater clarity to adoption legislation. It provides security for children and strengthens families. It strengthens our laws which have been out of step to deal with the realities of modern life. These changes which clear the way for non-married couples and civil partners to adopt jointly are long overdue and welcome. I fully support and commend the Bill, especially in alleviating the legal limbo in which families and children in long-term foster care have found themselves for too long.

See this speech in context