§ Ms Beverley HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to prevent individuals from evading established procedures by making private arrangements for the adoption of children from overseas. [52199]
§ Mr. BoatengGuidance issued by the Department to social services departments and voluntary adoption agencies sets out the arrangements put in place for adoption from overseas. The procedures are designed to safeguard the welfare of children who are to be adopted, and to assist with the process of obtaining entry clearance for such children to enter the United Kingdom. The Department makes no secret of its opposition to the use of private home study reports, which attempt to circumvent the proper procedures for intercountry adoptions. The commissioning of private home study reports has recently been found to be illegal by a recent High Court judgment. The Department continues to oppose privately commissioned home study reports both in its guidance and in correspondence.
Officials continue to liaise with authorities overseas seeking their co-operation in accepting only those homestudy reports which have been prepared by social services departments in the United Kingdom and are accompanied by the Department of Health's Certificate of Eligibility. In addition, officials are negotiating with a number of countries to obtain formal agreements about the handling of adoption applications. An agreement with Romania came into force earlier this year. These agreements are drafted on the principles and procedures outlined in the 1993 Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption.
Applications to courts in the United Kingdom to adopt children under the Adoption Act 1976 who have been adopted overseas with the help of a privately commissioned home study report are normally referred to the High Court.
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§ Ms Beverley HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will introduce legislation to enable the United Kingdom to ratify the 1993 Hague Convention on intercountry adoption. [52200]
§ Mr. BoatengLegislation to ratify the 1993 Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption will be introduced when Parliamentary time allows.