Starmer to make 'full apology' on behalf of British state for forced adoption of 185,000 children over three decades

By JAMES TAPSFIELD, UK POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 10:35, 17 June 2026 | Updated: 10:41, 17 June 2026 Keir Starmer is set to make a 'full apology' on behalf of the British state for the forced adoption scandal. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson confirmed the move will happen 'very soon' as she condemned the 'shameful' policy.   An estimated 185,000 children were taken from unmarried mothers and adopted between 1949 and 1976 in England and Wales. Administrations in Cardiff and Holyrood have previously said sorry to people impacted, but campaigners have long called for an apology from Westminster. Ms Phillipson told the Education Committee this morning: 'I know that you and the committee will want to hear that this Government will very soon be making a full apology on behalf of the state to all of those affected by historic forced adoption in England. Keir Starmer is set to make a 'full apology' on behalf of the British state for the forced adoption scandal Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson confirmed the move will happen 'very soon' as she condemned the 'shameful' policy 'The Prime Minister will have more to say on this shameful period in our history, reflecting the gravity of what has happened. 'But here and now, let me say to all of those affected, you will get the apology that you so profoundly deserve.' The committee has previously called for a formal, unqualified apology to be made by Government to survivors of forced adoption as a step towards giving them 'peace'. A report by the UK Government's Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) in 2022 recommended ministers apologise to unmarried women who were 'railroaded' into unwanted adoptions. In 2023, responding to the report, the then-Conservative government said while it was sorry 'on behalf of society' for the way the women had been treated, it did not think a formal apology appropriate 'since the state did not actively support these practices'. The JCHR said at the time that the lack of apology was 'disappointing'. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.