UK PM Starmer apologises in parliament for state role in forced adoptions

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has issued a formal apology in parliament for the state's role in decades of forced adoptions involving unmarried mothers and their babies. He described the policy as a stain on the country's history and said the government was deeply and profoundly sorry to everyone affected. The apology comes after years of pressure from campaigners and a parliamentary committee that had already called for an official response.

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According to the material presented in parliament, the system operated between 1949 and 1976 and involved the government, Christian churches and other institutions. An estimated 185,000 children were forcibly adopted during that period. Starmer said the state did not do enough to protect mothers, children and families from harm, and he acknowledged that the practice was embedded across local authorities, voluntary and faith-based institutions, and health and social care services.

The apology also follows a recent statement from the Church of England, which apologised for its role in the system, including the running of mother and baby homes. Women were often sent to these homes against their will and separated from their children. The parliamentary committee that examined the issue said the treatment of mothers-to-be had been inhumane and cruel, and its findings included accounts of pain relief being withheld during labour and after childbirth as punishment.

The issue carries wider significance because it concerns state responsibility for a long-running policy that affected tens of thousands of families over several decades. It also adds to a broader pattern of official apologies in other countries for forced adoption practices, including Australia in 2013 and Ireland in 2021. In the UK case, the apology is likely to renew attention on record access, institutional accountability and the long-term effects on survivors and their relatives.

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Starmer said the government would spend £4 million to help people access adoption records, support services that reconnect relatives and fund research into the long-term impact on victims. That commitment suggests the apology is intended to be followed by practical measures, although the scale of the historical harm means many questions remain about how far such support will go. The committee's earlier recommendation for an apology, made four years ago, also underlines how long survivors have waited for formal recognition.

What remains unclear is how quickly the new funding will be delivered and how many people will be able to benefit from it. It is also not yet clear whether further steps will follow on compensation, records reform or additional institutional reviews. For now, the apology marks a significant political acknowledgement of a system that survivors and investigators say was deeply abusive and widely embedded.

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