Vol. 415 No. 8
92 Mr. S. Barrett asked the Minister for Health if he will outline the action, if any, that is being taken by his Department to facilitate the establishment of a voluntary contact register in order to facilitate contact between adopted persons and their birth parents; and when it is expected such a register will be brought into full operation.
My predecessor recently received a deputation from an ad-hoc group representing a number of organisations working in the area of adoption which has come together to highlight the need for an adoption contact register.
I have seen the submission made by the group and, in principle, I accept the need for a properly regulated arrangement to facilitate adopted persons and birth parents who wish to make contact with each other. However, I would be concerned that any new arrangement must respect the right to privacy of adopted persons and birth parents and must contain adequate safeguards to preserve the anonymity of people who do not desire contact. I intend to give further consideration to the concept of a voluntary contact register.
