Averil Power (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 10:

In page 9, between lines 6 and 7, to insert the following:"Duty to notify the Adoption Authority of certain matters

5. (1) In this section--

"a person to whom this section applies” means any natural person who has information, whether in writing, stored electronically or otherwise (including information known to the person but not recorded in any durable medium) relating to the birth, placement for adoption, procurement of an adoption, or adoption of one or more adopted persons and includes, but is not limited to, any person who was employed by, was an agent of or worked for or on behalf of the Child and Family Agency, the Health Service Executive, or for or on behalf of any body or person that is or was an accredited body as defined by section 3 of the Act of 2010 or a body registered in the Adoption Societies Register maintained under section 35 of the Adoption Act 1952. This section shall not apply to information held by an adopted person or by the natural parent of an adopted person insofar as that information relates specifically to that adopted person;

"the Authority" means the Adoption Authority.

(2) Where a person to whom this section applies--

(a) has information that he or she knows or believes might be of material assistance to the Adoption Authority, an adopted person or natural parent in determining the identity and whereabouts of an adopted person, natural parent, or both, or

(b) knows or believes that any personal data relating to an adopted person, a natural parent, or both, and held by a body or person to which section 4(1) applies, is not a correct or true record of the circumstances or facts therein recorded,

it shall be the positive duty of such person to notify the Authority of the true facts and circumstances known to that person and to give to the Authority such information as is available to or known to that person.

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2), where a person to whom this section applies knows or believes that the age, date of birth or address of a natural parent, adopted person or adoptive parent has been recorded incorrectly, whether deliberately, negligently or inadvertently, in any records held by any body or person to which section 4(1) applies, the person shall notify the Authority of the true facts and circumstances known to that person and shall give to the Authority such information as is available to or known to that person.

(4) Where a person to whom this section applies provides information to the Authority under this section, the Authority shall--

(a) produce a memorandum setting out the information provided to it,

(b) include the memorandum in any file held by the Authority relating to the adopted person to whom the information relates and in any file held by the Authority relating to the natural parent or parents and adoptive parent or parents of that adopted person, and

(c) require that any body or person to whom section 4(1) applies shall include a copy of the memorandum in any file held by that body or person relating to the adopted person to whom the information relates and in any file held by that body or person relating to the natural parent or parents and adoptive parent or parents of that adopted person.

(5) Where a natural parent of an adopted person knows or believes that any personal data relating to an adopted person, a natural parent, or both, and held by a body or person to which section 4(1) applies, is not a correct or true record of the circumstances or facts therein recorded, the natural parent may notify the Authority of the true facts and circumstances known to him or her and give to the Authority such information as is available to or known to him or her.

(6) For the purpose of subsection (5), a natural parent shall be entitled to consult such information as is held by a body or person to which section 4(1) applies as relates to the adoption of the natural parent’s adopted child, provided that the contact details of the adopted person and personal data that identifies the adopted person shall not be made available to the natural parent otherwise than in compliance with Part 3 of this Act.".

This is designed to address the concern that some information on files held by various agencies and the Adoption Authority may be incorrect or contain false information. This concern has been raised with me by adoptees and natural mothers who, having gained access to their files, have discovered that some of the information is inaccurate, for example, the age, date of birth or address of the natural parent at the time of the adoption. Some people have found that, after pointing out such inaccuracies to the bodies concerned, the information was not corrected. This point has been also made to me by the Adoption Rights Alliance and Adoption Loss.

Under the amendment, once an inaccuracy has been brought to the attention of the adoption agency, the Adoption Authority or another relevant body, it will be required to add a memorandum to the relevant records. The amendment also places a positive duty on those who know or believe information to be incorrect, including staff members of adoption agencies, to inform the Adoption Authority so that it can add a memorandum to the relevant records. It does not place a positive duty on an adoptee or natural mother. However, it allows a natural mother who has concerns about the accuracy of information on her file to inspect the file and, upon finding an inaccuracy, insist that a memorandum be added to it.