Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 30 Jan 1964

Vol. 207 No. 2

Adoption Bill, 1963—From the Seanad.

The Dáil went into Committee to consider amendments from the Seanad.

Minister for Justice (Mr. Haughey)

I move that the Committee agree with the Seanad in amendment No. 1:

Section 3: In subsection (1), lines 26 to 29, paragraphs (a) and (b) deleted and the following paragraphs substituted:

"(a) (i) the applicant has had the child in his care since before the child attained the age of seven years, and

(ii) the application is made before the child attains the age of nine years,

or

(b) the applicant or, if the applicants are a married couple, one of them, is the mother, natural father or a relative of the child."

Amendments Nos. 1 and 2 really go together because amendment No. 2 is merely a drafting amendment consequential on amendment No. 1.

Deputies will recall that when the Adoption Bill was being discussed in the Dáil, I undertook to give full consideration to a suggestion put forward by Deputy Dockrell and others that special provision should be made to enable a relative to adopt a child, even though it had passed the age of seven years. I found that this idea commanded general support in the Seanad also. Consequently, I accepted an amendment there to give effect to the suggestion. Amendment No. 1 does that: it enables a relative to adopt a child even though it has passed the age of seven years.

Mr. P. O'Donnell

Is "relative" defined?

Mr. Haughey

No.

Mr. Dillon

Does this licence to adopt extend up to the age of 21?

Mr. Haughey

Yes.

Mr. Dillon

In regard to the point raised by Deputy O'Donnell, it would be a matter of construction. Is there any difficulty in construing the term "relative"? That will certainly include aunts and uncles and people in that degree of relationship but when we come to cousins and second cousins——

Mr. Haughey

"Relative" is defined in the Principal Act, the 1952 Act.

Mr. Dillon

As covering?

Mr. Haughey

As covering grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or aunt, whether of the whole blood, of the half-blood or by affinity, relationship to an illegitimate child being traced through the mother only.

Mr. Dillon

That, for the purpose of this amendment, will be the definition of a relative?

Mr. Haughey

Yes.

Mr. P. O'Donnell

There were a number of cases prior to the introduction of the original Act where there was de facto adoption but never de jure.

Mr. Haughey

They are nearly all straightened out now.

Mr. P. O'Donnell

There are a good few in parts of rural Ireland where, through omission on the part of the foster parents, they neglected or were unaware of the age. Would the Minister consider whether or not it would be possible where a child had been adopted prior to the introduction of the original Act, now to amend the Bill so as to permit——

Mr. Haughey

There is no opportunity now to amend the Bill.

Mr. P. O'Donnell

I have in mind an amendment whereby "relative" would cover foster parent.

Mr. Haughey

Provision has been made in this Bill to cover practically all of these cases. They are being given an opportunity up to the end of December.

Mr. P. O'Donnell

If the Minister is satisfied, that is all right.

Mr. Haughey

I am sorry. They are being given two years.

Mr. P. O'Donnell

From the passing of this Bill.

Mr. McQuillan

In connection with the discussion in this House about extending the age for adoption, the Minister has now accepted one suggestion namely, that as far as age is concerned, that restriction will be removed in so far as relatives are concerned. I gather from the questions put by the Leader of the Fine Gael Party that the age does not count at all now up to 21 years of age in the case of adoption by a relative. Is that the position?

Mr. Haughey

If it is a relative, as defined, who is seeking to adopt the child, the child can be any age up to 21.

Mr. McQuillan

I have no objection to that. In fact, I welcome it. However, I find it difficult to understand how the Minister accepted that when he refused to extend the age beyond nine years for a non-relative. Surely it was unfair when the suggestion was put that the child could be adopted up to 14 or 16 years that the Minister should have shot it down on the basis that that child could not be integrated into the family at all. His argument was that if that were adopted, it was likely to shatter the entire scheme. The majority of opinion in societies and among the general public is not with the Minister. I cannot understand where he got his advice to the contrary.

The Legal Adoption Board on a number of occasions—perhaps not on every occasion the matter was discussed—decided by vote to support the idea of extending the age group. At this moment there is a very strong section of opinion amongst those people who have great experience over the years that it would not do harm to the Act or to what was intended in the Act but would relieve a very sad situation in many parts of Ireland, particularly in institutions.

Mr. Haughey

I have accepted this proposal—fairly reluctantly, I may say —because I feel that in this very limited, narrow category of cases, we can so provide without any danger to the structure of adoption as a whole. I am accepting it only because it is such a limited, narrow category and has been urged on me by the Deputies who support it. It relates to a special type of case, where a relative is adopting a child.

We have had arguments about extending the age. I would disagree with Deputy McQuillan when he says that the majority of people concerned with adoption are in favour of an extension. I am quite satisfied that the overwhelming majority of people in this country concerned with adoption favour infant adoption and the preservation of the structure of infant adoption which we have built up.

Mr. McQuillan

I agree, but with discretion.

Mr. Haughey

I am prepared readily to admit to Deputy McQuillan that there would be cases where it would be possible to have successful adoptions over the ages we prescribe. But the hard cases make bad law. Also, the whole trend of opinion, as far as we can ascertain it, in the Council of Europe countries and elsewhere, is in favour of infant adoption. We have been discussing in the Seanad reports from America. All these reports stress that where you have adoptions at ages later than seven very great skill on the part of welfare officers and adoption workers is required.

Amendment agreed to.

Mr. Haughey

I move that the Committee agree with the Seanad in amendment No. 2:

In subsection (3), line 34, "Paragraph (b)" deleted and "Subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a)" substituted.

Amendment agreed to.

Mr. Haughey

I move that the Committee agree with the Seanad in amendment No. 3:

Section 5: Before subsection (2) the following new subsection inserted:

"(2) Section 11 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (4) of the following subsection:

`(4) An adoption order shall not be made unless the applicants are ordinarily resident in the State and have been so resident during the year ending on the date of the order."'

This is an amendment which I recommended myself to the Seanad because a number of Deputies and Senators were worried about the section of this Bill which abolishes the existing requirements about a 5-year residence period here for non-citizens. They felt that the way was being left open for adoption orders in favour of people who were only, as it were, passing through the country. This amendment specifies that in order to obtain an adoption order the applicants must not alone be ordinarily resident here but must have been so for at least 12 months. As Deputies know, there is an obligation on the board to be satisfied as to the applicants' suitability and there is also a requirement that the applicants must reside here—that is, that they must have their home here.

Having regard to these two requirements, I am confident that this amendment will not have the effect of introducing any obstacle to adoptions that would otherwise be approved by the Board. This amendment, therefore, cannot do any harm in the way of preventing suitable adoptions. At the same time, it does help to reassure some Deputies and Senators who have been worried about the situation. Accordingly, I am recommending it to the House.

Amendment agreed to.

Amendments reported and agreed to.

Ordered: That Seanad Éireann be notified accordingly.