§ 70. Mrs. Rumboldasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if, following the recent decision of the 130W House of Lords that local councillors should have access to all written material in the possession of the local authority relating to confidential material on adoption cases, he intends to issue guidelines to local authorities to protect the privacy and confidentiality of individuals concerned in such cases.
§ Mr. NewtonThe judgment to which my hon. Friend refers draws a distinction between local authority councillors who are members of the social services committee and those who are not. In the latter case, it was held that there is no automatic right of access to documentary material in the possession of the social services department, and a "need to know" must be demonstrated.
The implications of this judgment for local authority adoption work are being carefully considered in the context of a review of the Adoption Agencies Regulations 1976 which we are currently conducting. The disclosure of confidential adoption information outside the local authority itself is already governed by those regulations.