Written answers

Wednesday, 18 September 2013

Department of Children and Youth Affairs

Inter-Country Adoptions

Photo of Mattie McGrathMattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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1250. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs in view of the impending end on 31 October of the current non-Hague adoption process ceasing the eligibility of Irish adoptive parents to adopt children from non-Hague and non-bilateral countries, if there will be reasonable accommodations put in place whereby the eligibility of Irish adoptive parents who are currently engaged in adoption proceedings with these countries but who may not have completed the process prior to the 31 October deadline will be accommodated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37566/13]

Photo of Mattie McGrathMattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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1251. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs with regard to section 63 of the Adoption Act 2010, if she, knowing the circumstances of individual pending adoption cases, intends to make amendments or adaptations to ensure their eligibility and thereby allow the completion of those adoptions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37567/13]

Photo of Mattie McGrathMattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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1252. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she intends to inform these adoptive parents of their position, if they will be able to complete their adoption process in the near future or if they will be left in limbo until 31 October; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37568/13]

Photo of Mattie McGrathMattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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1253. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to intercede on behalf of these adoptive parents before the deadline of 31 October; her plans to represent and voice their individual cases to the respective international adoption agencies or representatives in an attempt to ensure the completion of these adoptions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37569/13]

Photo of Tommy BroughanTommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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1258. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the actions that may be taken by her Department to deal either through legislative or other measures with the small number of prospective adopters who have been issued with a declaration of their suitability to adopt prior to November 2010 and who wish to adopt children from Russia but will be unable to conclude such adoptions because of a recent change to the Russian family code in relation to the amount of time that children placed for adoption would have to spend on the Russian adoption register; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37896/13]

Photo of Michael LowryMichael Lowry (Tipperary North, Independent)
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1262. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if her attention has been drawn to the difficulty that has arisen with section 63 of the Adoption Act 2010 due to a recent change in Russian law; if her attention has been drawn to the difficulty this has caused for Irish families already engaged and at an advanced stage of the adoption process with Russia; the steps being taken to assist the families affected; if she will take immediate action to amend section 63 to assist these families in completing their adoptions; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38080/13]

Photo of Stephen DonnellyStephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Independent)
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1267. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will consider an amendment to the Adoption Act 2010 that would give more time for adoptions from Russia that are already in progress but yet to be finalised, which is required as a result of a change in Russian legislation last year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38757/13]

Photo of Frances FitzgeraldFrances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1250 to 1253, inclusive, 1258, 1262 and 1267 together.

I have the utmost concern for the position that the prospective adopters who were close to finalising adoptions from Russia now find themselves in following the recent changes to the Russian adoption process. I have received a large volume of representations on behalf of the applicants involved and I and my officials have actively been trying to assist the small number affected. To this end I asked the Irish Embassy in Moscow to contact the Russian authorities for information on the legislative changes that occurred in Russia. The Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation has confirmed to the Irish Embassy that new legislation came into force on 3rd July 2013 which requires a child to be on the national adoption database for twelve months before that child is deemed eligible for intercountry adoption and may be placed on an international adoption database. The previous period was eight months.

The Adoption Act, 2010, provides for adoptions from countries that have ratified the Hague Convention on adoption and from countries where there is a bilateral agreement in place. During the drafting of the Act a considered and detailed transitional process to deal with the change from previous legislation to the new Act was put in place. The transitional measure contained in Section 63 of the Adoption Act, 2010, allows applicants with a valid declaration of eligibility and suitability to adopt who had commenced the adoption process at the time of the commencement of the Act to continue with that adoption, from a non-Hague, non-bilateral country. Such applicants were thus afforded an additional three year period to complete these particular adoptions from non-Hague countries, and must complete the process by the 31st October 2013.

Firstly I have been using diplomatic channels to seek solutions for the applicants involved. To this end I wrote to the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to request that the Irish Ambassador to the Russian Federation contact the relevant Russian authorities to outline the difficult situation these applicants have been put in following the change in Russian procedures and to explore possible solutions. The Irish Ambassador to Russia met with the Deputy Foreign Minister Titov in Moscow on 10th September 2013 and outlined the position and noted our desire for a degree of flexibility in relation to the implementation of the changes recently introduced, which has affected a small number of Irish applicants who were at an advanced stage in the adoption process.

I have also recently met with the Embassy Attaché from the Russian Embassy to Dublin who was representing the Russian Ambassador to highlight the current difficulties the sudden change in Russian legislation has created. This meeting was positive and the Attaché indicated that officials from the Ministry of Education in Moscow are aware of the issues and are examining them closely.

In conjunction with the diplomatic efforts being made through various channels, I am exploring the possibility of amending the Adoption Act, 2010 to address this situation. As the Act is drafted on the basis of the incorporation of the Hague Convention and the minimum set of standards outlined therein, the implications of amending the Adoption Act, 2010 must be carefully examined.

Photo of Finian McGrathFinian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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1254. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will provide an update concerning foreign adoptions, in particular the declaration of eligibility and suitability delay; if social workers may assist families applying for foreign adoptions as a matter of priority; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37604/13]

Photo of Frances FitzgeraldFrances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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Declarations of eligibility and suitability (DES) to adopt which were issued under Section 63 of the Adoption Act 2010 are due to expire on 31st October 2013. Following consultation with my Department, the AAI and the HSE agreed a process whereby holders of valid Section 63 declarations, may apply to the HSE under Section 37 of the Act for an assessment review, which will not include a full assessment process. These applicants may then apply for a declaration to be issued under Section 40 of the Act.

The HSE advises that as of the 1st of March 2013 the number of DES issued under Section 63 of the Act which were still to be acted upon was 370. In March the HSE wrote to these Section 63 DES holders to invite them to apply for an assessment as part of the application for a DES which would be issued under Section 40 of the Act, and 161 of these applicants applied. The HSE social workers are prioritising theses assessments and I have been advised that there is no delay.

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