The Australian Federal Government is moving to stop gay couples from adopting children from overseas -- with legislation that would deny the children visas. The Government will introduce a Bill into parliament which will see overseas adoptions by same-sex couples not legally recognised in Australia. If the Family Law (Same Sex Adoption) Bill becomes law, the child would not be granted a visa to enter Australia. It will "amend the Family Law Act 1975 to indicate that adoptions by same sex couples of children from overseas under either bilateral or multilateral arrangements will not be recognised in Australia". The new law would override state and territory laws. At present, overseas adoptions can occur between Australia and other countries that have ratified the Hague convention, or with which Australia has a bilateral agreement. Prime Minister John Howard has previously said he does not support gay couples adopting children. "I don't support gay adoption, no," Mr Howard said in response to the ACT's law change. "I'm against gay adoption, just as I'm against gay marriage. "I think there are certain benchmark institutions and arrangements in our society that you don't muck around with. "Children ideally should be brought up by a mother and a father who are married. That's the ideal." Gay equality groups have lashed out at the Federal Government, accusing it of using the issue of gay adoption to try to gain the support of the religious right in this year's election. "The Government has been dangling this carrot in front of the religious right for three years," says The Australian Coalition for Equality's Rodney Croome. "This has the potential to win support amongst fundamental and evangelical voters without being passed, so why would the Government want to pass the bill and neutralise this as an issue when it can keep on exciting the interest of the religious right by introducing it (again and again)." Croome adds that while it was unlikely the bill would be passed before the election, "it doesn't allay my fears because we're in a very volatile political environment". Ref: News.com.au, The Age (m)