Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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51. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the steps she is taking to protect the children of illegally adopted persons who are unaware of their status from receiving false medical records in view of the delay in progressing the Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill 2016; and the way in which these persons are being protected from receiving incorrect medical family histories. [18814/18]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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The Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill 2016 provides for the first time a statutory entitlement to identity information for adopted persons.

The legislation provides for structured and regulated access to information and tracing services for those affected by adoption. It sets out the information that can be provided, which includes early life information and medical information, and the circumstances in which it can be provided to adopted persons. A key provision in the Bill is that an adopted person aged 18 years or over who was adopted prior to the commencement of the Bill will be provided with the information required to apply for his or her birth certificate, subject to certain conditions. 

The term ‘illegal adoption' is used to cover a wide range of situations and actions including the incorrect registration of a birth. The Bill also provides that a person who was in an informal arrangement where no adoption order was affected and persons whose birth was incorrectly registered can apply for information and tracing services.

The Bill provides that the Adoption Authority of Ireland will be responsible for collecting, restoring, preserving and safekeeping of adoption records, including information relating to informal adoptions and persons whose birth was incorrectly registered.

I share the Deputy’s concern in relation to those persons who are affected by adoption and must await the passage of the legislation to access their history. My focus is on proceeding with the Bill as quickly as possible, so that we can move to a situation where these new rights and services are available to this cohort of people. My officials are currently actively engaged in drafting Committee Stage amendments to address issues raised in the debate to date and I hope to progress the Bill as soon as possible.