Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On Second Stage when I announced what I was doing in this regard, I made the point that I believe it is important we do not make registration compulsory because it could begin to create a perception that if a person fails to register a declaration, that person could not be a guardian. It is important this does not happen. I am committed in principle to the establishment of a central register. It is surprising we have not had one for guardianship up to now. It simply has not existed. At present, it is up to the person concerned to keep this important document. Some people make the declaration in front of a peace commissioner or a commissioner for oaths. As it stands, it is up to them to keep it. Many Deputies in the other House as well as many Senators have made the point that this is such an important document because it is about parentage and that we should have a central registry.

I have examined the matter and what would be involved. It would be quite a big operation to begin to establish a central registry. I have committed to establishing two pilot projects and I will examine the results of those. I intend to set those up immediately. We will start with the pilot projects to see the implications of developing it further.