Education Committee considers the Adoption Bill at Stage 2, 02/11/06 [S]

During their meeting on 2 November 2006 the Scottish Parliament Education Committee considered the Adoption and Children (Scotland) Bill at Stage 2. The Committee made decisions on amendments in relation to matters including children's rights and independent advocacy.

The Committee decided not to pass an amendment to the bill that would have given children the right to independent advocacy in adoption proceedings. Robert Brown, Deputy Minister for Education and Young People, said that there is already a series of obligations on the court to ensure that children's voices are heard and that there is nothing to prevent anyone from expressing their views in any way to the agency or the court.

Other amendments relating to children's rights were not moved. In the bill at present a child of 12 or over is generally held to be of sufficient maturity to give his or her consent to the various orders, unless the court is satisfied otherwise. The amendments had sought to remove the reference in the bill to a child's age so that when an adoption agency or court has regard to a child's views, only the child's maturity, rather than their age and maturity, would be considered. Robert Brown said that the amendments would create the risk that a child who was aged 12 or over would be unable to express his or her views if he or she was not considered to be mature enough.

For full details read the Scottish Parliament Education Committee Official Report 2 November 2006.

Further information

Scottish Parliament Education Committee Official Report 2 November 2006

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