Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

Section 35 provides for the transposition of the existing arrangements. As it stands, the Ard-Chláraitheoir can release such information only on the order of the adoption board and of the courts. As Members will be aware, the Minister of State, Deputy Lenihan, is examining a new adoption Bill. If a decision is made arising from that legislation which frees matters up and changes the modus operandi , we will reflect that in these legislative provisions.

This is a sensitive issue because there are two sides to the argument. There is a greater openness in society now and greater comforts and supports to deal with issues that may arise. From a medical perspective, I am aware of an instance where access was provided under a medical portfolio through the adoption society on the basis of a particular disease. On the basis of the public consultation that has taken place, the Minister of State, Deputy Lenihan, has given a guarantee that he will deal with this matter from a legislative point of view when dealing with adoptions. Until such time as that has been completed, I do not consider it appropriate to go beyond what is in existence at present save, in effect, an amalgam of the registers. We have had a foreign and national register of adoptions and now we will have one register. Furthermore, the certificate will be available all over the country.

It was not and is not my intention to restrict access to searches in any way. As I stated, we hope to provide an Internet facility. This would be an excellent and very progressive way of dealing with searches. The registrar would naturally have to set down rules and guidelines on access to and interference with the public record. It would be on this basis — in conjunction with a consideration of the practicalities — that the registrar would decide on any variances with regard to access to searches. The provision will only come into play if something untoward happens.

The idea is that access will be greater. We can now facilitate searches from people's area of residence rather than asking them to travel all the way to Dublin to obtain information. Gaining access will be quicker because the information is now available electronically. The work carried out by those in the GRO in Roscommon in transposing all the historical facts into electronic format has been tiresome, but they have done it brilliantly. The service that will be provided will result in greater additionality and a greater service to anyone who wants to carry out a search. In no way does it restrict anyone from gaining access to what is, of course, a public record.