Sir, - Now it is Kevin Myers's turn, following John Waters, to express outrage at the word "adoption" in the Equality Authority's Report, "Implementing Equality for lesbians, gays and bisexuals". Is it too much to ask that either of them might actually read the report? It's quite short, but it does contain nine chapters on areas of continuing concern, such as violence and harassment, education, youth services, the workplace, as well as partnership issues.
Among the health issues addressed is that of the appalling rates of suicide by young men, a topic on which John Waters has been rightly eloquent. Among the partnership issues addressed are the ideas that pensions that have been paid for should actually be paid out to the surviving partner; that tax, succession and housing rights might be harmonised; and that non-EU partners be given rights of residence. The report explicitly points out that all non-married couples, heterosexual and homosexual, suffer much the same discriminations, which should now be removed for all. Indeed, in the entire report there is not one suggestion of special privileges, but instead suggestions of fairness to remove the discriminations that still distort our lives.
Despite John Waters's dismissal of the notion, the primary reason for the inclusion of the word "adoption" is to allow a person to become the adoptive parent of her or his partner's child. This is a live issue of great concern to many couples throughout Ireland, particularly for lesbian couples. But the report does indeed also suggest a change in the law to allow both single people and all unmarried couples to adopt, where (specifically) it is in "the best interests of the child".
We are perfectly well aware that in Ireland there are fewer than a 100 adoptions a year, and that even after the necessary legal changes, it may be rare enough for a gay or lesbian couple to be deemed the best potential parents. The point, however, is that they should be considered, not automatically and instantly excluded.
There has been little attention paid to the recent legal change in Britain introducing just these reforms to their adoption laws. Not done "because of political correctness", but out of desperate necessity. They wish to widen the base of potential parents who might adopt some of the numerous children in community homes, whose lives would be transformed by loving mothers and fathers, in whatever combination. - Yours, etc.,
CHRISTOPHER ROBSON, Chelmsford Avenue, Ranelagh, Dublin 6.