Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 September 2013
16. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if she will initiate a public inquiry into the Sacred Heart mother and baby homes and the manner in which adoptions were handled there since its inception. [38605/13]
View answerThe Adoption Act of 1952, as subsequently amended, provided a legal basis for adoption in Ireland and for the establishment of the Adoption Board thereby bringing order to what had been the adhoc arrangements which had previously existed in lieu of formal adoption procedures. That Act was replaced most recently by the Adoption Act 2010 which also established the Adoption Authority of Ireland. All adoptions in Ireland since 1952 have been underpined by a legislative basis.
While my Department's remit in this area relates to adoptions carried out under the relevant legislation I am aware that there have been concerns about informal adoptions or illegal registrations some of which are associated with some mother and baby homes. The issue in Ireland of illegal adoptions very much relates to illegal registrations, i.e. children who were given at birth to other individuals who registered these children as their own and who are now unable to access personal records and information. I have met with individuals who have found themselves in these circumstance and I acknowledge and empathise with the dilemma that these individuals are addressing.
Efforts have been made by the Adoption Authority of Ireland and the HSE, within their legal remit, to facilitate the investigations that these individuals are undertaking in endeavouring to establish medical and/or identifying information about themselves.
In consultation with the Adoption Authority of Ireland and the Health Service Executive, my Department is examining legislative and administrative options in relation to accessing records which may exist. I am also examining provisions in this regard in the forthcoming Adoption (Information and Tracing) Bill. I have recently received further legal advice from the Office of the Attorney General in regard to complex legal and constitutional issues which have arisen during the course of drafting the Heads of Bill. These issues are currently under consideration in my Department.
Approximately 25,000 files have been transferred to the HSE Regional Adoption Service in Cork, from the Sacred Heart Adoption Society, which had responsibility for Bessboro, Co Cork, Sean Ross Abbey, Roscrea, Co Tipperary and Castlepollard, Co Westmeath. I am advised by the HSE that there has been very significant demand to access these files and consequently the HSE Regional Adoption Service in Cork has not been able to respond as quickly as would have been hoped. In parallel with facilitating such access, work by the HSE on the organising and storage of these files has taken place and planning is underway for reorganising the approach to dealing with information requests to improve access.
I have no plans to initiate a public inquiry into the specific issue raised by the Deputy.
