Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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13. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs when she expects to publish the adoption (information and tracing) Bill; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23040/16]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I have raised this issue with the Minister before. It concerns a commitment on timing for the publication of the adoption (information and tracing) Bill. It is intended to publish it before the end of the year. Is there a more precise date? Has any consideration been given to incorporating this particular element into the adoption Bill that has passed Second Stage? That might speed up the process, rather than having two parallel Bills.

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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Work on drafting the adoption (information and tracing) Bill is under way and I am committed to publishing it as early as possible after the summer recess. The heads and general scheme of the Bill were published in July 2015. It was then referred to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children for pre-legislative scrutiny, and the committee published its report in November 2015, as I know the Deputy is aware.

Following consideration of the report, a revised scheme was developed which amended the previous suite of measures to balance the right to identity of the adopted person with the right of the birth parent to privacy and to be left alone. The Government approved the drafting of this Bill, taking account of the report of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children on the pre-legislative scrutiny of the general scheme and heads of the Bill in December 2015.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Bill is intended to facilitate access to adoption information and operates on the basis of presumption in favour of disclosing information, in so far as is legally constitutionally possible, for domestic and inter-country adoptions. The Bill will, for the first time, provide a statutory basis for the provision of information related to past and future adoptions. It will provide clarity around the information that can be provided and the circumstances in which it can be provided.

One of the key provisions in the Bill is to give an adopted person aged 18 years or over who was adopted prior to commencement a statutory entitlement to the information required to apply for his or her birth certificate, subject to certain conditions. The Bill also provides that an adopted person whose adoption was effected after the commencement of the Bill will be given his or her birth certificate at 18 years of age.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I thank the Minister for her reply. This is a really important issue for many people who for years have tried to get this kind of information and have gone to all kinds of lengths. The rest of us take for granted having our birth certificates and knowing about our origins, yet there are people who still have not been able to get that information. That is why I am persisting with this issue.

I hope the Minister will be able to publish the Bill as soon as possible after the summer recess. She may be able to publish it before then. We need to pass this legislation as quickly as possible. I ask that consideration be given to dealing with the tracing and information aspects within the Bill that has passed Second Stage.

Getting Dáil time, bringing a Bill before the Seanad and so on takes time. Passing two Bills presents challenges in terms of getting time within the two Chambers. Getting this done is a priority. There will be questions around balance, but it is important that the presumption is in favour of disclosure. I wish the Minister well with the Bill but I want to make sure it is published.

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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In my earlier reply I tried to indicate that we are dealing with the issue. I very much appreciate that the Deputy has consistently asked questions that help me to maintain pressure in terms of the work of the Department.

I hope to publish the Bill as soon as possible after the summer recess. We are waiting for a redraft of the Bill from the Office of the Attorney General and I hope that will be with us tomorrow. I checked that information before coming to the Chamber. When we receive it, we will go through it again. As the Deputy knows, there may be challenges in terms of reviewing the Bill and dealing with any outstanding policy issues. The Bill is an absolute priority for me.

The Deputy is correct; there are two Bills. In that regard, they are some of the primary Bills on which the Department is working. I understand the Department does not have a significant workload in terms of other aspects of legislation.

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick City, Labour)
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I urge that that happen as soon as possible. We are not particularly overloaded with legislation in the Chamber, and I do not know how overloaded we will be in the autumn. It tends to be the case that a lot of Bills come together and we may be fighting for space at a later stage in the year. I again urge that this work be done as quickly as possible.