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CAMPAIGNERS HAVE CRITICISED the “long delays” facing people who have requested their birth information after agencies confirmed the waiting period is set to be triple the wait previously planned.
Instead of 30 days, many people now face a wait of 90 days or more through the new Birth Information and Tracing system.
It affects people who were adopted, boarded out or subject to an illegal birth registration – as of this month they can request access to their birth certificates and early life information.
Campaigners have said they are “deeply disappointed” and “incredulous” at the new delay.
A joint statement issued by Tusla and the Adoption Authority of Ireland (AAI) today said they are “acutely aware of the disappointment” for people awaiting their birth information, and apologised for the delays.
A combined total of 6,552 applications from people seeking their birth and early years information, or to trace a relative, have been received by both agencies since the new services launched on 3 October.
They said they are “experiencing a high level of interest” in the provisions of the new Birth Information and Tracing Act and said they welcomed the correspondingly high number of applications from people availing of the new services.
So far, the two agencies have processed and issued just 65 requests for information.
Tusla/AAI statement: https://t.co/2rhCPDsIbx
— Claire McGettrick 🏳️⚧️ (born Lorraine Hughes) (@cmcgettrick) October 28, 2022
📁Between the 2 agencies 65 info requests have been dealt with.
⚠️That's just 1.4% of 4632 total info requests received between the 2 agencies.
ℹ️There have been a total of 6552 requests including tracing requests etc.
“We are acutely aware of the disappointment this may cause and we sincerely apologise for the delay in processing applications,” a statement on BirthInfo.ie read.
“Both agencies are doing their utmost to respond to all the applications received within the shortest timeframe. We will continue to keep every person who is waiting for information informed about their application.”
The statement added that the AAI is also processing 2,705 applications made to the Contact Preference Register and has successfully identified 154 matches for relatives for whom they are facilitating contact and reunion.
Processing the initial “large volume of information requests is proving to be a challenge”, despite the daily numbers stabilising since 12 October, the statement continued.
“While we welcome the large volume of applications, it is proving difficult to respond to all requests within the timeframes set out.
“Because of this, Tusla and AAI are writing to affected applicants, advising them of the delay and assuring them of the commitment to respond as soon as possible.”
‘Time-consuming’
It added that searching for and extracting the records is “time-consuming, sensitive and involves meticulous attention to detail given the historical nature and condition of the records”.
The issue is exacerbated by records being held across a range of locations or databases, according to the agencies.
Adoption rights campaigner Claire McGettrick said the agencies and Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman should have been prepared for a high number of applications.
“The State has had many, many months to prepare for this. It’s something that’s obviously of huge interest to people so we’re incredulous that this has happened,” she told The Journal.
Bearing in mind that trust levels are just so so low among the affected people in this area, the general reaction from people is that they’re just deeply disappointed.
“They’re not surprised because they’re used to be treated like they’re so used to being seen as second best or being expected to take second best.”
McGettrick said that AAI are writing to people to say to people to say that they will have to avail of an extra 60 days provided for through legislation.
Meanwhile, Tusla has told some people that it needs an extra 60 days to process their information, but in other cases, information may be provided by late December.
Information and Tracing Act
The Birth Information and Tracing Act, which was signed into law earlier this year, provides a full and clear right of access to information for people who have questions about their origins.
It also enables people to access this information where their parent has died, and for access by the next of kin of a child who died in an institution.
Under previous legislation, adopted people were not entitled to their birth certificate or to information about their families of origin.
Under the new law, even if a biological parent says they don’t want their child to get their birth cert or related information, the adopted person will still get access.
The Act also introduced a range of new measures to support people affected by illegal birth registration, including free counselling.
Information requests can be made to the Adoption Authority of Ireland (AAI) and Tusla through the bespoke website BirthInfo.ie. All information falling within the categories of information defined in the Act must be released, without exception, where it exists.
With reporting by Órla Ryan
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Michelle O’Neill is absolutely correct in her call for this, but the North being the North; it is pretty obvious that the push from Michelle and the pushback from Arlene stems from something other than Coronavirus/public health.
@LangerDan: What about that funeral she attended not so long ago. Didn’t see much social distancing, did you? Plus did everybody there do self isolation after? Only thing she did with that statement was prove she is every bit hypocrite that she shamelessly branded to others.
@Richard Cronin: There has been more than enough hypocrisy to share around during this pandemic from many quarters. However it is important that we do not allow past hypocrisy create tunnel vision. I’d rather a hypocrite make a U-Turn than stick dogmatically to their original position. The issue here is, it makes perfect epidemiological sense to have an island wide solution to this; but the Northern parties are so entrenched in Green-Orange politics that such sound calls get proposed and opposed under a different light.
@LangerDan: so why are all the airports & harbors open? It’s not like the virus is going away anytime soon. Plus how is all this to be payed for? Most hypocrites are around for the sound bites but not for actual problem solving
@LangerDan: cash for ash foster would rather flood the place with unchecked tourists than listen to sf warning
She’s 100% right but unfortunately has undermined her own authority on Covid by attending Sinn Féin funeral that broke all common sense rules of social distancing.
@Brendan Walsh: hypocrisy in action
@Brendan Walsh: she had no choice, she was only following orders.
@John Mulligan: yaaaaawwwwwnnnn
@Richard Cronin: it is 14 days today since that funeral and as the numbers show, it was so well organised around social distancing regulations that not a single case of covid has been traced to it.
@M Bowe: actually 21 days.
@M Bowe: the west Brits are out in style
Poor Arlene. Would sooner see her people dessimated by a lethal virus than give an inch on her beloved Union.
@Toon Army: Maybe Michelle and colleagues should have thought of that before organising a mass attendance at a recent funeral.
@TL55: I don’t think they planned on a funeral??
Sinn Fein demanding internment for people entering Ireland. Detained without trial. Hilarious.
Does anyone really take this woman seriously?
@Brian Renaghan: Of course not Arlene Foster is a relic of the old era but luckily people are listening to Michelle O’Neill and taking what she says seriously.
When it came to closing and opening schools, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales took a different approach than England, so why are they insistant that they MUST now maintain the common travel area controls (or rather a lack of controls) with the rest of UK.
It really is hard to take anything from SF seriously. This type of proposal requires consensus from the executive and that is the forum for such an initiative. This solo run is just sectarian politics at its worst.
@camio55: do you even know what sectarianism is. Maybe check it out before using it!!!!!
@M Bowe: Sectarianism is a form of prejudice, discrimination, or hatred arising from attaching relations of inferiority and superiority to differences between subdivisions within a group.
Never thought I’d end up on Arlene’s side. Strange times.
Yet she went to a funeral where how many people attended? Calling for holding areas for people without due process? Congratulations you are every bit the hypocrite you shamelessly brand other politicians
@Richard Cronin: you are giving her too much credit. She doesn’t have any say in policy, she was appointed by the army council and is just a mouthpiece for them, the same as her clone in the south.
This is just an attempt by her handlers to leverage the covid crisis to suit their own agenda.
Sinner wants to stop traffic from Britain and align with Republic. Shocker
And the Republic of Ireland needs to protect itself from the spread of Covid-19 from Northern Ireland and vice-versa by limiting mass gatherings including attending IRA funerals, Michelle, Mary Lou and Pearse.
The porous border that the Unionists love could kill a lot of people !
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