London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 04, 2025

Sturgeon issues apology over forced adoption

Sturgeon issues apology over forced adoption

Nicola Sturgeon has issued a "sincere, heartfelt and unreserved" apology to people affected by the practice of forced adoption.

Thousands of unmarried women in Scotland were forced to give up their babies for adoption in the 1950s, 60s and 70s.

The first minister told Holyrood it was time to "acknowledge the terrible wrongs that have been done".

She said: "What happened to these women is almost impossible to comprehend."

It is estimated 60,000 women in Scotland had babies adopted simply because they were unmarried.

Many women were coerced into handing over their babies and some were denied access to housing and social benefits which may have allowed them to have kept them.

Some children forcibly removed from their parents as a result of forced adoption were abused, Ms Sturgeon told MSPs.

She added: "It is important to say very clearly that many of them went to loving homes - acknowledging these injustices should never be seen as a rejection of the deep bonds that people share with adopted families.

"Nothing can ever invalidate the love that these families have for one another. But it is also clear that many of those affected - far too many - had a very, very different experience.

"We know some will always have lacked a sense of belonging, some may have suffered mistreatment or abuse."

Addressing MSPs in the Holyrood chamber as victims and campaigners watched on from the public gallery, Ms Sturgeon said forced adoption was "a level of injustice which is hard now for us to comprehend".

She said it was caused by a society that treated women as "second class citizens".


'Thrown to the wolves'
Marion McMillan, seated in the centre, was in Holyrood to hear the apology along with fellow campaigners and MSPs


Marion McMillan, from Paisley, was 17-years-old when she had her son taken from her after she gave birth in a Christian mother and baby home.

Speaking on BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland, she said: "I was just a wee lassie and I left this country called Scotland, to go to this country England I only knew in the geography books.

"We were absolutely thrown to the wolves - you couldn't even go to the church. You were stuck in the darkest of providences.

"Not only did your family reject you, the whole of society rejected you. You couldn't tell anyone you had this baby."

Ms McMillan, now in her seventies, said the formal apology will bring a "great measure of healing" to thousands of mothers and adoptees.

The first minister made the apology in the Scottish Parliament


Fiona Aitken, director of the Adoption UK Scotland charity, said: "We wholeheartedly support the apology for those who had their children removed and are particularly pleased to see this extend to the individuals who were adopted through this practice, whose lifelong needs have gone unacknowledged and unsupported.

"Adoption UK now calls on other UK governments to follow Scotland's lead in issuing a formal apology to all those who have been affected by forced adoptions, and to meet the needs of all adopted individuals who would benefit from support."

The apology in Scotland follows others around the world.

In 2013, Australia issued the world's first government formal apology for forced adoption, taking responsibility for the practice.

Then in 2021 the Irish government apologised to former residents of mother and baby homes in Ireland for the way they were treated over several decades.


'Appalling cruelties'


The Scottish government has committed funding of about £145,000 to provide specialist support and counselling for those affected by forced adoption and research is also under way to identify how existing support services can be improved.

Opposition MSPs welcomed the apology.

Scottish Conservative deputy leader Meghan Gallacher, said: "Although a national apology cannot right the wrongs of the past, I hope that it will be the start of a healing process for those suffering lifelong trauma.

"My only regret is that some campaigners have sadly died before this apology was made."

Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie, said: "These appalling cruelties are perhaps among the most heinous of injustices that our society has inflicted on women and their children."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
×