Ministers have vowed to overturn a Lords vote blocking adoption rights for unmarried, gay and lesbian couples.

Moves to reform adoption laws were defeated by a packed House of Lords on Wednesday night.

The government has pledged to strike down the Lords amendments when the Adoption and Children Bill returns to the Commons.

Forum Response: Barnardo's

Ann Frewin, principal policy officer at Barnardo's, said: "Last night's defeat in the Lords of the amendments to the government's adoption Bill, which would have allowed unmarried couples to adopt, will result in fewer placements available for children in care.

"We are concerned that emphasising 'traditional' family structures in relation to adoption could discourage potentially valuable people from coming forward. A change in the adoption law would ensure that certain groups of people are not seen as less preferable than others as adoptive carers.

"At present we do approve unmarried couples as adopters, but the law only allows one partner full parental rights, while the other partner takes on more or less guardian status. Therefore, if one partner dies, the other has virtually no rights.'

"Barnardo's feels that the most important factor in adopting a child is ensuring the child is placed in a loving and stable relationship. Although Barnardo's welcomes suitable applicants from the gay and lesbian community this is not the primary issue - our main concern is to promote the stability of any adoption regardless of the sexuality of the adopters."

Forum Response: CARE

Forum Response: CARE

Roger Smith, Head of Public Policy at CARE, told ePolitix.com: "CARE welcomes the vote in the House of Lords last night. CARE enthusiastically supports the government's attempts to improve the adoption system. 60,000 children are in local authority care. They are a very vulnerable group. Our concern is that the interests ofvulnerable children should always be paramount in adoption law."

"CARE's belief, based on our practical experience of looking after vulnerable children, is that changing the law to extend joint adoption to cohabitees is unnecessary as single people - including cohabitees - can already adopt as individuals."

"Neither is it in the best interests of children to be adopted jointly by couples who are not legally committed to each other. Children need stability. Cohabitation is much less stable than marriage. It can only be right, therefore, that couples wanting to adopt a child should be committed to each other through marriage for the sake of the child."

"CARE also contends that it is not in the best interests of vulnerable children to be adopted jointly by same sex couples as this would deny them, in law, even the possibility of having a father figure or mother figure."

"It is crucial that we allow the evidence, not our prejudices, to determine our approach to this amendment. Children deserve no less. CARE will be producing a briefing on this Bill for the House of Commonsshortly.'