Adoption

Baroness King of Bow Excerpts

Tuesday 18th November 2014 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness King of Bow]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the recent drop in referrals of children for adoption by local authorities.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools (Lord Nash) (Con)]

My Lords, since 2010, adoptions have risen by 63% to a record level of more than 5,000 last year. However, there has been a significant decrease in children coming into the system since September last year. This appears to be in response to particular court judgments. Information collected by the national Adoption Leadership Board has led it to conclude that there has been some misinterpretation of those judgments. Consequently, the board has produced guidance so that everyone who works on adoption can be confident that they are interpreting the judgments correctly.

[Baroness King of Bow (Lab)]

My Lords, as the mother of three adopted children, I welcome the Government’s attempt to reform adoption. However, according to the most senior family court judge in England and Wales, Lord Justice Munby, the Government’s desire to speed up adoption has clashed with government cuts to legal aid. Is it not unacceptable that the state can say to parents, “We will take away your child” and at the same time say, “We will not guarantee you a lawyer”? Apart from adding to delays, does the Minister have any sympathy for parents facing this situation or, indeed, for Lord Justice Munby, who must rule on such cases and who says that this approach is “unprincipled and unconscionable”?

[Lord Nash]

Sir James Munby, the president of the Family Division, has stated his support of the aims of the myth-dispelling document that we published last week. He has helpfully clarified the rights of parents in this regard.