Jillian van Turnhout (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I add to the welcome and say that the Minister has had an outstanding year, from the children's referendum to the establishment of the child and family agency in two weeks, as well as all that has gone on in between. The Minister and her colleagues have clearly outlined the scenario that has led us to the need for the legislation. It is evident that the Minister, her officials and the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade have sought resolution through other channels and at every level but it has proven impossible. Changes to Russian family court laws have had serious implications in conjunction with existing Irish legislation for prospective adoptive parents.

That brings us to the legislation before the House today. It is tightly drafted, with added limitations, and it will address the calls received from approximately five prospective adoptive parents. However, it also opens up any unused Russian declarations as of 31 October 2013 which the Minister has clarified is a maximum of 23 prospective adoptive parents. Anyone who has talked to or met the prospective parents appreciates the heartbreak and emotional roller-coaster of the journey that they have had and so I realise that for them today is a good day. I will not oppose the Bill and I do not want to frustrate the resolution to this particular issue. However, I am duty bound to raise my general concerns and some specific questions about how we approach adoption in Ireland.

Ireland has a very chequered history when it comes to adoption. In 2010, we incorporated theHague Convention of 29 May 1993 on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption. It protects children and their families against the risks of illegal, irregular, premature or ill-prepared adoptions abroad. This convention reinforces the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, specifically article 21, and seeks to ensure that intercountry adoptions are made in the best interests of the child and with respect for his or her fundamental rights.

Let us not forget that whereas Ireland signed the Hague Convention in 1993 we had to be dragged kicking and screaming to incorporate it into our law. When we brought in the Adoption Act in 2010 we were the last EU country to ratify and over 55 countries ratified before us. We need to fundamentally reconsider how we approach adoption in Ireland and our system of closed adoptions is not always in the best interest of the child. A closed adoption is the process by which an infant is adopted by another family and the record of the biological parent is kept sealed. Open adoption is a form of adoption in which the biological and adoptive families have access to varying degrees of each other's personal information and have an option of contact. In my experience, children can cope and distinguish, and it is us adults who tie ourselves in knots.

It is my sense that some people misunderstand that the rationale behind adoption is the right of couples who cannot conceive to have a child. It is not. Adoption is about, where needed, finding alternative family arrangements for a child and fundamentally it is about the best interests of the child. I am keenly aware that as we stand here today there are approximately 50,000 adopted people in Ireland who have no automatic legal right to their birth certificate, their medical information or history, or to tracing information about their identity. We will be able to partly address these issues via legislation but aspects of this matter will need to be addressed at constitutional level, as I noted last October when we were discussing the children’s referendum Bill in this House. I realise that information and tracing is complex but we have to start moving on where change is possible. There is a clear lack of a legal framework. Is the State collecting and ensuring that it has access to important and vital records relating to children’s identities? For example, have the religious orders handed over records to the State that will help when the necessary legislation is in place?

Moving to the Bill before us, I say well done to the drafters who have worked hard to produce a clear, tightly constructed Bill. As I stand here I am thinking that in less than 18 years these children will be adults. Will they have access to information on their identity? We saw the fall of communism 14 years ago and the rush for adoptions so will Ireland over the coming years have issues to deal with? I think of Ireland’s history with adoptions and how many "went to America" or in reality were sold to so called "good Catholic families" for a better life. Nobody who saw the movie "Philomena" was not touched and conflicted by her story. We do not want to create scenarios today that will be the films of tomorrow.

Are we setting a precedent today? The adage "hard cases make bad law" springs to mind. Will we change the law for other groups of people who are not in line with our law and the Hague Convention? Does this not open the gates for other "one-off" fixes? We have all heard the understandably emotional calls from the four or five prospective adoptive parents but let us remember the law today will extend the period for up to 23 prospective adoptive parents. When a country ratifies the Hague Convention we have seen again and again how the number of children eligible for adoption dramatically falls. This happens because the children were never legitimately available for adoption and often have fallen foul to criminal activity, including corruption and the sale or trafficking of children. Can we be assured that in any one or more of these cases significant money has not and will not change hands? I ask these questions now because one or more of these children, upon turning 18, may have the same difficult questions for their parents. Will we be able to give answers?

It is critical that a rigorous verification process be put in place for all adoptions. In ending, may I wish each of the children who are to be adopted and to their prospective parents a really happy and fulfilling life. Nevertheless lets us not forget that adoption is the right of a child, not of adults, and we must ensure that this is not lost sight of. If anything is to be learned from the Ryan and Murphy reports, it is how crucial it is to have adequate systems in place to protect vulnerable children. We need to re-examine our approach to adoption so let us lead and show that we really have learned from our chequered past.