UK to Issue Formal Apology for Years of Forced Adoptions

WHO:

ABC News - Prime Minister Keir Starmer will make a statement in the House of Commons.

ABC News - Ann Keen, a former U.K. health minister whose baby was taken for adoption in 1966.

ABC News - Archbishop of Canterbury Sarah Mullally.

WHAT:

ABC News - The British government plans to formally apologize for separating tens of thousands of unmarried mothers from their babies.

ABC News - An estimated 185,000 babies of unmarried mothers were adopted in England and Wales between 1949 and 1976.

ABC News - The apology from Starmer’s Labour Party government comes two weeks after the Church of England issued an apology for its role in forced adoptions.

BBC - Starmer stated, "We are deeply and profoundly sorry to the mothers who were told they were unfit, who were prevented from caring for the children they desperately wanted to help and to keep, and who have carried this loss for decades."

WHERE:

ABC News - The statement will be made in the House of Commons, London, UK.

ABC News - The apology follows similar actions in Scotland and Wales.

WHEN:

ABC News - The formal apology is scheduled for Thursday.

WHY:

ABC News - The apology acknowledges the state’s role in forced adoptions and the pressure, deception, and threats faced by women.

ABC News - Campaigners have fought for years for acknowledgment of the pain and suffering caused by public institutions and state employees.

HOW:

ABC News - The apology is part of a broader reckoning with the legacy of social norms, religious practices, and government policies regarding unwed mothers.

(UPDATED July 2, 2026 13:42 UTC)

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is set to make a significant statement in the House of Commons, where the British government will formally apologize for the separation of tens of thousands of unmarried mothers from their babies, acknowledging the state’s role in forced adoptions. This apology, scheduled for Thursday, comes after similar acknowledgments in Scotland and Wales, and follows a recent apology from the Church of England for its involvement in these practices. Starmer expressed deep remorse, stating, "We are deeply and profoundly sorry to the mothers who were told they were unfit," highlighting the long-lasting pain and suffering caused by public institutions and state employees.