Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to reduce backlogs in the family courts; and whether he has assessed the potential impact of reinstating legal aid contracts and restoring early legal advice for family law cases on reducing the backlogs.
Answered by Mike Freer
Reducing the backlog in the family courts is a priority for this Department. Alongside the successful Mediation Voucher Scheme which, as of 5 February 2023, has allowed over 14,500 separating couples to access mediation away from the family courts, we intend to publish a consultation shortly seeking views on proposals to support families to reach agreements earlier.
We are expanding our plans for judicial recruitment to secure enough capacity to sit at the required levels across all jurisdictions in this financial year and beyond.
Legal aid contracts remain in place for family matters that are within scope of legal aid, as set out by the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to stop perpetrators of domestic abuse misusing the court system to maintain control over former or current partners.
Answered by Edward Argar
Protecting victims of domestic abuse remains a priority for this Government. A range of protective orders can already be made in the family court, including non-molestation and occupation orders.
The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 strengthened the law on section 91(14) orders (‘barring orders’) making it clearer that these orders are available to the family court to protect parents and children where further proceedings would risk causing them harm, particularly where further proceedings could be a form of continuing domestic abuse. The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 also prohibits alleged perpetrators of abuse from directly cross-examining their victims in person in family and civil courts in England and Wales. The Act further provides that victims of domestic abuse will be automatically eligible for special measures in all courts.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the impact of the Defamation Act 2013 on victims of domestic abuse and coercive control.
Answered by Edward Argar
A Post-Legislative Memorandum reviewing the impact of the Defamation Act 2013 was published in October 2019. The broad conclusion is that the Act ensures the right balance in law is achieved; that free speech is not unjustifiably impeded by actual or threatened libel proceedings, while ensuring that people who have been libelled are able to protect their reputation.
The fear of being threatened with libel should never stop anyone from reporting abuse.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to extend the scheme supporting prison leavers at risk of homelessness into temporary basic accommodation to all 12 National Probation Service regions.
Answered by Kit Malthouse
Our Prisons Strategy White Paper sets out our vision that no-one subject to probation supervision is released from prison homeless. By 2024-5, we will invest £200m per year to transform our approach to rehabilitation. This includes expanding our Community Accommodation Service-Tier 3 transitional accommodation service across England and Wales. The service will support those under supervision from probation who are released from prison at risk of homelessness with up to 12-weeks accommodation.
We have issued the Community Accommodation Service-Tier 3 prior information notice which is available at: https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/000136-2022.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will conduct a review of the use of expert psychological witnesses in the family courts for the purposes of ensuring credibility, standards and consistency among experts particularly where allegations of domestic abuse have been made.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
The Government does not have any plans to conduct a review on the use of expert psychological witnesses in the family courts. Part 25 of the Family Procedure Rules 2010 stipulates the requirements and standards determined of all expert witnesses when they and their evidence are put before the family court. This legislation also emphasises the independence of experts and the key role of judicial discretion throughout this process.
Section 13 of the Children and Families Act 2014 makes detailed provision in relation to the control of expert evidence, and of expert assessments, in children proceedings, and is underpinned by detailed provision for practice and procedure set out in the Family Procedure Rules 2010 and supporting Practice Directions developed by the Family Procedure Rules Committee (FPRC).
The President of the Family Division, Sir Andrew McFarlane, established a working group to identify the scale of the problem of medical expert witness shortages in the family courts. A report was published in October 2020 which looked at the causes and possible solutions.
In October 2021 the President of the Family Division published a memorandum which seeks to explain the principles applied by the Family Court when it considers whether to authorise or admit expert evidence. This memorandum includes the reminder that experts should only be instructed when to do so is ‘necessary’ to assist the court in resolving issues justly.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to record centrally the number of cases in child contact arrangements where (a) allegations of parental alienation have been reported, (b) allegations of both parental alienation and domestic abuse have been reported, (c) who has made the allegations against whom, and (d) the outcome of such cases around child contact arrangements.
Answered by Tom Pursglove
Incidences of alleged parental alienation by either parent in relation to family proceedings about child arrangements are not recorded centrally.
A new monitoring and reporting mechanism is being piloted by the Domestic Abuse Commissioner and the Victim’s Commissioner. This mechanism aims to improve understanding of how private law children cases involving domestic abuse are treated.
In addition, the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) reports any concerns about alienating behaviours to the court, focusing on the impact on the child’s safety and welfare and in the context of wider family dynamics.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress his Department has made on the review of the application of the presumption of parental involvement in the family courts, announced on 9 November 2020.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
The Government launched the review into the presumption of parental involvement in child arrangements cases in November 2020. This review focuses on understanding how the presumption, together with its ‘risk of harm’ exception, is applied by the courts, including where there is evidence to suggest that the involvement of a parent will put the child at risk of harm. It also focuses on the impact on children’s welfare of the courts’ application of the presumption and its exception. An Advisory Group was established in November 2020 to inform the direction of the review, which has faced delays, largely due to COVID 19 restrictions. Work on the literature review, the qualitative research project, and the case file analysis continues.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the implementation of the recommendations made by his Department's expert panel on reforming the family court response to domestic abuse, what steps he plans to take to help ensure that accurate data is collected on the (a) number of allegations made of parental alienation and (b) outcome of child contact in cases where those allegations are made.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
Incidences of alleged parental alienation by either parent in relation to family proceedings about child arrangements are not recorded centrally. Such information can only be obtained from individual case files at disproportionate cost.
In assessing the child’s best interests, the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) assess and report any concerns about alienating behaviours to the court, focusing on the impact on the child’s safety and welfare and in the context of wider family dynamics. Parents are also able to inform the court of any concerns they may have about the other parent. Cafcass’ Child Impact Assessment Framework includes various tools and guidance that further support social work practitioners in identifying where a child expresses reluctance to have an ongoing relationship with a parent, including domestic abuse, persistent and harmful conflict and alienating behaviours.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the prevalence of the use of parental alienation accusations in the family courts.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
Incidences of alleged parental alienation by either parent in relation to family proceedings about child arrangements are not recorded centrally. Such information can only be obtained from individual case files at disproportionate cost.
In assessing the child’s best interests, the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) assess and report any concerns about alienating behaviours to the court, focusing on the impact on the child’s safety and welfare and in the context of wider family dynamics. Parents are also able to inform the court of any concerns they may have about the other parent. Cafcass’ Child Impact Assessment Framework includes various tools and guidance that further support social work practitioners in identifying where a child expresses reluctance to have an ongoing relationship with a parent, including domestic abuse, persistent and harmful conflict and alienating behaviours.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of cases in which allegations of parental alienation have been made by an alleged perpetrator of domestic abuse.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
Incidences of alleged parental alienation by either parent in relation to family proceedings about child arrangements are not recorded centrally. Such information can only be obtained from individual case files at disproportionate cost.