Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for her clarity. Analysis of the Adoption (Amendment) Act was carried out following the adoption of the Act by the Houses in 2017. There have been calls for the introduction of semi-open adoptions. What is the Minister's perspective on semi-open adoptions, whereby birth families have ongoing contact with adoptive families and there would be contact between the adopted child and his or her birth family? Does the current Act allow for that, would it require further legislation or has the Minster given thought to the issue in light of the analysis that took place at a conference hosted by the Adoption Authority of Ireland in November and attended by the chairperson of Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, and other representative bodies which espoused that view?

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