Starmer apologizes to families affected by decades of forced adoption of policies

Sir Keir’s formal apology came after he met with campaigners in Downing Street on Thursday morning.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer formally apologized Thursday for the British state's role in separating tens of thousands of unmarried mothers from their babies , a practice that lasted for decades until the 1970s.

An estimated 185,000 children were adopted in England and Wales between 1949 and 1976, when pregnancy outside marriage carried a strong social stigma.

Keir Starmer is clearing the decks in his last three weeks in office, and today he is going to settle one unresolved issue when he delivers a formal apology on behalf of the state to victims of forced adoption policies that were in place in the middle of the last century.