Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. Before we proceed, I want to add my voice to those who have expressed disappointment. Sometimes this place is like the Stone Age. Yesterday we were given amendments with stars beside them. We went through them one by one, collected our thoughts on them and put them down on paper. We were given a list and we addressed them as we received them. We were then given a list of numbered amendments and groupings. This dictates that we will take amendments Nos. 1 and 2 first, and in the second grouping we will take amendments No. 3 and 150, which is on the last page of amendments. Going through that is a mammoth effort. I would have proposed during the Order of Business that we would not take the Bill today so that we had more time to go through its provisions. I welcome the fact that at least we have a short period in which we can go through it today.

I also welcome the Minister's commitment to meet with the organisations and the campaigns involved in this issue. I know she has come from a background of activism; nothing about us without us and all of that. I welcome the fact that she has committed to meeting those groups which represent the people affected and those with lived experience of the issue.

The Short Title and commencement relates to the Bill's provisions. I wanted to take the chance to note that this is not that common in Ireland, or at least in this State, apart from what has been introduced in Britain and the North. According to an email I received, these proposals are completely out of step with the North, England, Scotland, Wales and many other European jurisdictions where adopted people receive their right to information at adulthood or at the age of 18. In England and Wales when a person reaches the age of 18 he or she has access to his or her birth records. That was introduced under the Children Act 1975. In the North, people who have reached the age of 18 have had access to their birth certificates and adoption files since 1987. In Scotland, adopted people over 16 years of age have been able to access their birth certificates and adoption records since 1930. It is not common that we are out of sync in this State. Sometimes we follow the British example, which is not for the greater good. In this case we are departing in entirely the opposite direction years later. In discussing the commencement of the provisions I wish to ask why they are so different to international best practice.