Vol. 460 No. 3
161 Ms F. Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Health the proposed international agreements under the auspices of his Department which are currently being drafted or prepared; and the international organisation, if any, responsible for the proposed agreement in each case. [19423/96]
162 Ms F. Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Health the international agreements under the auspices of his Department which, as of 1 January 1996, have been signed by the State but have not been ratified; the international organisation, if any, responsible for the agreement in each case; the date and place each agreement was adopted or opened for signature; the date it was signed by the State; whether it is proposed to ratify each agreement; and if so, when. [19442/96]
163 Ms F. Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Health the international agreements under the auspices of his Department which, as of 1 January 1996, have not been signed by the State and which it is proposed that the State should sign or become a party to; the international organisation, if any, responsible for the agreement in each case; the date and place each agreement was adopted or opened for signature; and when it is proposed to sign each agreement or become a party to it. [19457/96]
Limerick East): I propose to take Questions Nos. 161, 162 and 163 together. There are no international agreements under the auspices of my Department which have been signed but not ratified.
There is one international agreement under the aegis of my Department which has not been signed and which it is proposed to sign. This is the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in respect of Intercountry Adoption which was completed on 29 May 1993 under the aegis of the Hague Conference on Private International Law, an organisation of which Ireland is a member.
The primary objectives of the Convention are to provide safeguards to prevent the abduction or sale of children and to establish a system of co-operation amongst countries in order to ensure that intercountry adoptions take place in the best interests of the children concerned. The Convention complements the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which Ireland has ratified. I am currently in the process of seeking Government approval to the signing of the Convention.
In so far as international agreements currently being drafted or prepared are concerned, my Department is currently arranging a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement with Australia for temporary visitors. There is no international organisation involved in this arrangement.
