§ Mr. ThurnhamTo ask the Secretary of State for health (1) what her Department is doing to renegotiate the age limitation of 35 years with the Romanian adoption committee;
(2) if she will make a statement on the current state of negotiations with the Romanian adoption committee about adoption from Romania.
§ Mr. YeoThe agreement between the Romanian Committee for Adoptions and the United Kingdom will be reviewed in the new year. Age limitation will be among the issues to be discussed.
§ Mr. ThurnhamTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) how many couples are on her Department's approved list for adoption from Romania; and how many of these couples have become ineligible because of the terms of the agreement with the Romanian adoption committee;
(2) if she will bring forward proposals to refund payments for approved home studies by couples who have become ineligible for adoption because of the terms of agreement with the Romanian adoption committee.
§ Mr. YeoTwenty one couples resident in England have been given approval to adopt children from Romania. Sixty-five couples, resident in the United Kingdom, were advised that they were ineligible following the agreement signed on 19 March 1992. The question of repayment for home study reports carried out for unsuccessful applicants is a matter for individual local authorities.
§ Mr. ThurnhamTo ask the Secretary of State Health (1) what action is now being taken to facilitate the adoption of named children from Romania;
(2) how many children were adopted into the United Kingdom from Romania (a) in 1990, (b) in 1991 and (c) since the signing of the agreement with the Romanian adoption committee.
§ Mr. YeoIn 1990, a total of 13 children from Romania were granted entry clearance approval with an understanding that adoption proceedings would be undertaken in the United Kingdom. In 1991 there were 215 and in 1992 there were four such approvals. No children have as yet been admitted under the agreement procedures.
We have asked our ambassador in Bucharest to raise with the Romanian Government our concerns about the delays experienced in processing adoption applications of United Kingdom citizens.