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In a resolution adopted on 23 April 2015, based on the report by Olga Borzova (Russian Federation, NR), the Assembly called upon member States to introduce laws and procedures that put the best interest of the child first in any placement, removal and reunification decisions.

It also recommends that removal decisions are based only on court orders, except in urgent cases.

According to the text adopted, families should be provided with the necessary support – financial, psychosocial – to avoid unwarranted removal decisions. It is also necessary to avoid severing family ties completely and removing children from parental care at birth, except in exceptional cases provided for in law, and subject to effective judicial review. PACE recommended drawing up guidelines for member States on how to avoid these practices.

http://www.coe.int/en/web/portal/-/putting-the-child-s-best-interest-first-in-any-placement-decision?inheritRedirect=true&redirect=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.coe.int%2Fen%2Fweb%2Fportal%2Fnews%3Fp_p_id%3D101_INSTANCE_6RkUqXTkPTR5%26p_p_lifecycle%3D0%26p_p_state%3Dnormal%26p_p_mode%3Dview%26p_p_col_id%3Dcolumn-1%26p_p_col_count%3D1

Resolution Social services in Europe: legislation and practice of the removal of children from their families in Council of Europe member States

http://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/Xref-DocDetails-EN.asp?FileID=21737&lang=EN

Video of the debate

http://clients.dbee.com/coe/webcast/index.php?id=20150422-2&lang=en&ch=24