Children and Adoption Bill [HL]

I would never defend from the Dispatch Box measures that I regarded as ethically unacceptable. We do not see this as a matter of ethics, except in so far as there might be implications for those who cannot afford charges and we are protecting them fully. We see this essentially as a matter of priorities. We fully recognise that intercountry adoption is not a cheap undertaking and the decision to charge has not been taken lightly. But the service in question is a personal service and we believe that the money the taxpayer currently contributes to provide it, about £300,000 a year at the latest estimate, could be better directed at frontline children’s services.