MPs pass bill boosting foster care

Prague, Sept 5 (CTK) - The Czech Chamber of Deputies yesterday overrode the Senate's veto and definitively passed the government bill aimed to reduce the number of children in institutional care and to enhance foster care.

Critics say the bill, if implemented, would disintegrate the current functioning system, turn foster care into a market activity and basically destroy institutional care.

The government, on its part, says the bill, an amendment to the law on social and legal protection of children, enables kids to grow up in natural environment after their biological families failed.

The bill's clear goal is to improve the support for children by natural families and improve the chance of adoption and foster care, Labour and Social Affairs Minister Jaromir Drabek (TOP 09) told the deputies.

Opposition Social Democrat (CSSD) Dagmar Terelmesova, who defended the Senate's position, said she is afraid that potential foster parents' interest in bringing up kids may not be as high as Drabek's ministry expects. This may result in a situation where there will be neither a well-functioning foster care system nor institutional care facilities to place children in, senator Terelmesova said.

The draft amendment was supported by 108 deputies, including five Social Democrats. At least 101 votes were needed in the 200-seat Chamber of Deputies to override the upper house's veto.

The amendment reckons with the professionalisation of foster parents whose remuneration would rise and who would receive it even while not caring for any children.

Facilities offering an immediate aid to children in need will receive less money from the state, but parents should pay them more.

Foster parents' remuneration will be newly assessed as a salary, which would secure their pension insurance.

Social care clerks are to help problem families to enable children to stay at home. If they cannot stay in their own biological family, they would be sent to professional foster parents temporarily,

The passing of the amended law on social and legal protection of children was the last point on the lower house's agenda yesterday. The session will continue on Thursday morning.