Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)
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Question 228: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the position regarding persons who want to adopt children from non-Hague and non-bilateral countries. [13798/10]

Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The Adoption Bill, 2009, is designed to give force of law to the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption. The new legislation, which incorporates the provisions of the Hague Convention, is designed to provide a framework to ensure that appropriate procedures have been followed and that all adoptions are effected in the best interests of the child. Future intercountry adoption arrangements will be governed by the terms of the Adoption Bill 2009 when enacted.

I brought forward at Committee stage an amendment to the Adoption Bill 2009 that will enable prospective adoptive parents to proceed with an adoption from a non-Hague or non-bilateral country, if prior to the establishment date, they have been issued with a Declaration of Eligibility and Suitability to adopt. The proposed amendment requires that the Adoption Authority (to be set up under the Act) would be satisfied that the particular adoption meets all the standards of the Hague Convention. Following the Committee stage debate I am also giving consideration to the possibility of including the 'cooling off' period provided for in the ratification process for the Hague Convention in the transitional provision.