Russian adoption registration
Deputy O'Sullivan raised an exceptional case involving a family trying to register adoptions from Russia after an oversight on arrival in Ireland. The Chair noted the sensitivity, and the Minister promised to follow up with colleagues on what could be done.
It is only in the most extreme and exceptional circumstances that I bring individual cases up on the Dáil floor. I have full permission to use the names of the individuals in question - Gerald and Norah Orpen and their two children, Gerald and Gavin. The children were adopted from Russia when they were aged one and two, respectively. At that point they lived in the US but in 2010 the family moved to Ireland, at which point, through an oversight, they did not register the adoptions. Since then they have had a battle to try to register these adoptions, which has meant that the boys, who are now 17- and 18-years-old, cannot apply for a passport or a driver's licence. Of most urgent concern is the fact that one of the boys, who is suffering from cancer, cannot apply for a medical card because he cannot register. This is complicated by the fact that the adoptions were from Russia and they need the co-operation of Russian solicitors. I urge the Minister to bring this to the attention of his colleague, the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Deputy O’Gorman.
Comment on this
I thank the Deputy for raising it and I will do everything I can to follow up with Government colleagues to see what can be done in this specific case.