New adoption bill in Ireland gives same-sex couples right to adopt

Ireland’s Minister for Children and Youth Affairs updated the country’s adoption law to give same-sex couples the right to adopt. The law provides for joint parenting of lesbian and gay couples.

Previously, same-sex couples could adopt under the ‘sole applicant’ rule, meaning the child was only legally adopted by one partner. The new Bill extends adoption rights to same-sex couples and cohabiting partners.

The Bill follows Ireland’s legalization of gay marriage by popular vote last year, when 62% of the Republic’s electorate voted in favor of same-sex marriage, against the wishes of the Catholic Church. The Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, called the result of the Irish referendum a ‘defeat for humanity’.

The adoption Bill was first approved by the Irish government last year. At the time, Ireland’s Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald said: ‘This reform of family law is a major step forward. It’s a substantial and detailed response to the reality of family life in Ireland today.’

via Gay Star News