None of the responders so far answered the real question:

"Who should have the most say regarding by whom a child is raised"?

The answer is, THE CHILD!

Once a child is grown enough to express their wish clearly and consistently, then it must be up to them to choose (among willing adopting parents) who is to raise them.

Prior to that, we should look at and learn the child's intentions from the child's earlier choices, and the most striking and obvious among them is the choice to be born to their particular birth-parents, to identify with the body which they produced.

(and for those who claim that the child did not choose, it's true that the body of the child did not choose, but if there's nothing more than a body there, then it doesn't matter anyway by whom and how that body is raised, nor whether it is raised at all)

That makes the birth-parents the most likely people to represent their child correctly, the most likely people through which the wishes of the child, though they cannot yet be spoken directly, can somehow be expressed.

Thus we are not discussing the "rights" of parents nor the "rights" of agencies, but rather the child's own freedom of choice. While the child is very young, the one and only possible avenue by which his/her choice can be expressed, must not be blocked by laws.

'Just to give some idea of the numbers involved, there were four (4) local adoptions in WA in 2013-4.

yep otb the baby killing industry would lose $$$ of taxpayer funded money if saving childrens life became a priority. Hopefully they don't sell the body parts here like they have been doing in the US. Sick that we should even have this conversation. And we call Islam uncivlised!

I partially agree with Yuyutsu.

"That makes the birth-parents the most likely people to represent their child correctly, the most likely people through which the wishes of the child, though they cannot yet be spoken directly, can somehow be expressed."

One only has to look at the baby Gammy case:

THE Thai surrogate mother left with abandoned baby Gammy said she will raise him, after his Australian parents discovered he had Down’s syndrome.

“I’ll take care of Gammy on my own. I’ll not give my baby to anybody,” Pattharamon Janbua said from a hospital where Gammy is being treated for a lung infection, Fairfax Media reports.

http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/parenting/k-raised-for-abandoned-baby-with-down-syndrome-born-to-thai-surrogate/story-fnet08ck-1227009760126

Basic principles should apply with adoption, and not have something forced onto either parents or children by an outside agency or government, with some type of political or politically correct driven line behind it.

At any stage, parents will need to make an informed decision. The above mentioned case shows how strong some parents can be.

We must however on the other hand be clear and see balance. A recent television survey saw around 75% of people (in Australia) supporting sex selection of children as acceptable (and be legalised here). Personally I believe a lot of these people would have been parents or either to be parents.

Existing or to be parents (can be very biased) and see children as "theirs" or a "right". There should be protection for children of a basic nature - not like simply an item a person can buy off a supermarket shelf.

A child's life is a very serious issue, particularly as they grow and emerge into a future.

runner,

The public would be hoping that after the first spike in abortions and the noticeable reduction in children available for adoption, that the rate of abortion might have plateaued.

That is, that the further reductions in children available for adoption might at least in part be attributable to a reduction in the stigma of having and raising children outside of marriage.

However, is not likely that there would be much in the way of guvvy grants available to research who has abortions in Australia and why, and who are more likely to have their child adopted and why.

Some observations on adoption (from elsewhere), that may provoke some discussion,

http://statistics.adoption.com/information/adoption-statistics-placing-children.html

AJ,

My open post was addressed to idiots. What does your response to that post make you?

As a conservative, I am used to the bullying and name-calling of the Left. If you wish to deem me a 'homophobe' so be it. As I said, it as no effect on me and my principles.

It says nothing about me whatsoever, ttbn.

<<My open post was addressed to idiots. What does your response to that post make you?>>

Unless, as I said before, you can rationally justify your original remark. Which apparently you can't. So there has been no "bullying" or "name-calling" on this thread yet.

<<If you wish to deem me a 'homophobe' so be it.>>

You yourself demonstrated that you're a homophobe. I simply pointed it out. Apparently I was right.