AN inquiry into the sending of children to the US for adoption in the 1950s and 1960s was called for by Mr Alan Shatter (FG, Dublin South).

The revelation that hundreds and perhaps thousands, of children born to unmarried mothers were dispatched to the US was "yet another insight into the manner in which children have been treated by the State over the years", he said in an adjournment debate.

The child care agency, Barnardos, reported inquiries from over 200 adults sent to the US as children who now wanted to trace their parents. Many of them found difficulty due to falsification of birth certificates and lack of access to information that might be available in the Passport Office.

He called for legislation to establish a contact register and counselling for children seeking to trace their origins and natural parents seeking to make contact with their children.

The Minister of State for Health, Mr Austin Currie, said no official records existed as they were not required to be kept by public authorities in the past. The only records related to children who were adopted under Irish law.

He was asking health boards to check any records that might be available to determine the extent of the practice of sending children abroad for adoption. Given the dearth of information about arrangements that were made 30 or 40 years ago he did not think an investigation was practicable.

Regarding falsification of birth certificates, he said it was an offence and if anyone had firm evidence they should give it to the General Register Office. Also, if anyone had evidence of a registered adoption society acting illegally it should be given to the Adoption Board which had statutory responsibility for supervising the societies.

The Government was committed to establishing an adoption contact register. He would examine the possibility of extending its scope to Irish children adopted abroad, but that might not prove possible.