Verbatim report of proceedings

Thursday, 2 February 2017 - Brussels

Cross-border aspects of adoptions (debate)

  Jane Collins, on behalf of the EFDD Group. – Mr President, adoption is a wonderful alternative for otherwise unwanted children, or a child that’s left in an unsafe environment. But what concerns me about this report is that it’s another power grab by Brussels over the jurisdiction of family law. In the UK, there are strict laws about family courts, including the privacy of proceedings for what is and always will be a very emotive subject. But what I fear, with this latest demand for ‘more Europe’, is that the best interests of the child may be put second to the EU’s desire for more and more power. And what happens if it is a disputed adoption? If the grandparents want to adopt? Or one parent is actually fighting the case? How will that work if the child is taken across another country’s border, into another culture, or maybe where the child will be brought up speaking a different language? I believe that we all should be encouraging families to be strong and cohesive units, which is the best environment for bringing up a child, surely. We should not be making it easier for families to be torn apart.

(The speaker refused to take a blue-card question under Rule 162(8))

In this Parliament, a great deal of disrespect was shown to my colleague, Nigel Farage. Unfortunately, until our colleagues can show each other respect, I’m afraid I won’t take any more blue cards.