Victims of historic forced adoption deserve apology, UK ministers told

Survivors of mother-and-baby homes, which were run by the state or religious bodies, reading a report on the practice in Northern Ireland. Photograph: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images

Ministers should officially apologise to tens of thousands of unmarried mothers in England and Wales who had their babies taken for adoption through a “brutal and cruel” process, MPs and peers have said.

The joint committee on human rights (JCHR) estimates that 185,000 children were taken from their mothers between 1949 and 1976, and says the government bears ultimate responsibility for the pain and suffering caused by public institutions and state employees involved in the process.