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Cardinal urges Government to promote fostering
- 09-03-2009
- Categorized in: News Releases
Monday 9 March 2009
Cardinal urges Government to promote fostering.
Following a Parliamentary statement by the Scottish Government's Children and Early Years
Minister Adam Ingram on legislation to allow same-sex couples to apply to
foster children, Cardinal Keith O'Brien has urged the Scottish Government to
instead "launch a high profile campaign urging more couples to consider
fostering".
The Scottish Government is currently consulting on a revised set of looked
after children regulations, and has stated its intention to repeal the
existing regulation prohibiting same-sex couples from fostering.
Commenting on the proposal Cardinal O'Brien said:
"The proposals to extend the right to foster to same sex couples is as
misguided and inappropriate as the previous change to allow same sex
adoption. In a consultation at the time of the change in adoption law, 80%
of respondents opposed the change yet the Government ignored their concerns
and changed the law. I urge the Scottish Government not to jeopardise the
welfare of children who need foster care in a similar way."
"There is no evidence to suggest that such a change widens the pool of
potential foster carers and in any case why not simply launch a high profile
campaign urging more couples to consider fostering? For my own part I appeal
to Scotland's 250,000 catholic families and to the thousands of catholic
couples married in our churches every year to consider sharing the love and
stability which I hope fills your homes with a child who has little or no
experience of either, by offering to foster."
"A mass of evidence, attests to the instability of unmarried relationships
and the instability of same sex partnerships yet worryingly it is
ignored. Since less than two percent of the population is homosexual and a
minority of this group are in a stable relationship, which would allow
consideration as foster parents, It is difficult to see how the changes
advocated can have any meaningful impact on the widening the potential pool
of foster families."
ENDS
Peter Kearney
Director
Catholic Media Office
5 St. Vincent Place
Glasgow
G1 2DH
0141 221 1168
07968 122291
pk@scmo.org
www.scmo.org
Cardinal urges Government to promote fostering.
Following a Parliamentary statement by the Scottish Government's Children and Early Years
Minister Adam Ingram on legislation to allow same-sex couples to apply to
foster children, Cardinal Keith O'Brien has urged the Scottish Government to
instead "launch a high profile campaign urging more couples to consider
fostering".
The Scottish Government is currently consulting on a revised set of looked
after children regulations, and has stated its intention to repeal the
existing regulation prohibiting same-sex couples from fostering.
Commenting on the proposal Cardinal O'Brien said:
"The proposals to extend the right to foster to same sex couples is as
misguided and inappropriate as the previous change to allow same sex
adoption. In a consultation at the time of the change in adoption law, 80%
of respondents opposed the change yet the Government ignored their concerns
and changed the law. I urge the Scottish Government not to jeopardise the
welfare of children who need foster care in a similar way."
"There is no evidence to suggest that such a change widens the pool of
potential foster carers and in any case why not simply launch a high profile
campaign urging more couples to consider fostering? For my own part I appeal
to Scotland's 250,000 catholic families and to the thousands of catholic
couples married in our churches every year to consider sharing the love and
stability which I hope fills your homes with a child who has little or no
experience of either, by offering to foster."
"A mass of evidence, attests to the instability of unmarried relationships
and the instability of same sex partnerships yet worryingly it is
ignored. Since less than two percent of the population is homosexual and a
minority of this group are in a stable relationship, which would allow
consideration as foster parents, It is difficult to see how the changes
advocated can have any meaningful impact on the widening the potential pool
of foster families."
ENDS
Peter Kearney
Director
Catholic Media Office
5 St. Vincent Place
Glasgow
G1 2DH
0141 221 1168
07968 122291
pk@scmo.org
www.scmo.org