CNA reports that one of the largest and oldest Roman Catholic adoption agencies in England, Catholic Care, will stop finding parents for children in need due to the government’s new laws on homosexual adoptions.

The Sexual Orientation Regulations (SOR), which were rushed through Parliament earlier this year despite opposition from many MPs and religious leaders, require adoption agencies to accept same-sex couples as prospective parents.

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor had warned of the possible closure of seven Catholic adoption agencies if the regulations were passed.

According to a report in The Daily Mail, Catholic Care, which is based in Yorkshire and run by the Diocese of Leeds, became the first to pull out of the adoption business after a vote by its trustees.