'Børnene Først' i forhold til børn-og familiers rettigheder

In 2020 the former social democratic prime minister stated in her first New Year’s speech that there was going to be a greater focus on forced placements and forced adoptions. As a result of this, the former social democratic government presented a bill that went by the name ‘Børnene Først’ back in May 2021. The aim of this bill is to provide children with as many legal rights as possible in matters regarding placement proceedings. The starting point for the bill was that the voice and opinion of the children are rarely heard in these cases. The bill has a strong focus on vulnerable families and hence the parent’s ability to meet their children’s needs and thus not be an inhibiting factor for their well-being and development. A starting point in children’s rights and an ambition to improve these can hardly be seen as a bad thing by anyone, as children are under the authority of their parents during the first 18 years of their lives. It is therefore extremely important to ensure that the children are heard if their parents or legal guardians fail to live up to their legal responsibilities. However, placement cases will have to be looked at from a much broader perspective than just vulnerable families. There is no doubt that some vulnerable families may need more help and support at times, but going from help and support to placing their children in foster care – perhaps even with an intent of forced adoption, is a huge step. A legal action that should only be applied if all other steps have been proven insufficient, as stated in Section 2 of the Legal Security Act. The purpose of this thesis is to shed light on the legal issues that come with the bill as it very fast becomes apparent that basic human rights as well as discrimination are too common a factor in this bill. When and if this bill gets passed, there is an overwhelming probability that a basic human right such as the right to family as stated in art. 8 in