Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. I pay tribute to all the Senators who have contributed on the matter, in particular Senator Boyhan. It is something he obviously feels very strongly about. I welcome the legislation which is very comprehensive and long overdue. In the referendum, we amended the Constitution, Article 42A of which now provides for this Bill. It is important to progress the Bill at the earliest possible date and that we cover all the angles. Sometimes, legislation is found not to cover everything. The Minister raised the issue of a person who is over 18 and I have come across that scenario in a court matter where an adoption was not processed and that is causing its own problems. It is a matter that obviously has to be dealt with at some stage.

When one is involved in the legal profession and in politics, one comes across some very complex cases. People tend to come to one because one is involved in politics thinking one has a magic wand even though it is a very complex legal problem. One issue that has arisen is where incorrect information is provided when a child is delivered. I have come across that situation and it is a problem that is going to get more complex as one has different nationalities in the country and not all the information the maternity services receive may be correct. I am not sure whether it is covered by legislation as regards trying to find information. I remember being in the High Court where we could not identify either the mother or the father, not because the child was not delivered in a maternity hospital but because incorrect information was supplied. There was a complication in that if an application to register a birth is not made within 12 months, an application must be made in court, which is complex, particularly if incorrect information is provided. I raise this issue because it may be relevant later in trying to deal with adoptions. I ask whether our maternity hospitals have sufficient procedures in place regarding the identification of those who are attending. It is an issue I have come across and while it might be going slightly away from the issue before us, it is one I had to deal with. It was complex and trying to ascertain information at a later stage was extremely difficult.

The legislation is long overdue and it is important. When children are in foster care, that insecurity still exists even though I know foster parents are providing the best possible care for them. However, that insecurity exists and it would be useful if a child could be adopted rather than to stay in foster care for the rest of his or her life. It is difficult when one comes across someone, as I did recently, who was in foster care from the age of seven but then found the natural parent had died, knew of the person's existence and yet had completely excluded the person from receiving anything at all from the estate. It is very difficult to try to explain that to a foster child. Even though the child was very well cared for in foster care, there was no opportunity to be adopted. If the legislation had been in place, the person would have been adopted. As such, the Bill is extremely important for everyone.

The Minister outlined the provisions of the Bill very well. My colleagues have gone through a lot of the sections, but the issue Senator Bacik and others have raised about tracing parents is an important one and we should prioritise it. I agree with Senator Bacik that we should try to introduce legislation in that regard in this House and move it on. We have already talked about the time that has passed since the referendum on this matter. Hopefully, we will not have to wait the same length of time again regarding traceability. I urge the Minister to bring forward legislation in that regard as soon as possible.