MoJ tables amendment stripping child rapists of parental responsibilities when sentenced

The Government has tabled an amendment to the Criminal Justice Bill that will see child rapists lose their parental responsibilities when they are sentenced.

The change will apply in cases where the perpetrator attacks any child, the Ministry of Justice said.

The MoJ said the measure would build on Jade’s Law, introduced through the Victims and Prisoners Bill currently progressing through the Lords, which applies an automatic suspension of parental responsibility in cases where a perpetrator has killed a partner or ex-partner with whom they share children.

The MoJ said the amendment would also provide important protections for innocent parents.

“While the courts do have the power to strip parental responsibility when it is in the best interest of a child, currently it requires families and former partners of perpetrators to instigate and fund proceedings to secure these orders to protect their children. Costs for these types of proceedings can run into tens of thousands of pounds. However, under the new rule, parental responsibility will be automatically suspended.”

The MoJ said this means the perpetrator would no longer have any say over key elements of a child’s life – “including whether they can access therapeutic support, go on holiday or change schools”.

The case will then be referred to the family courts, and it will be for the perpetrator to prove to a judge it is in the child’s best interests for their parental responsibility to be reinstated.

According to the MoJ, under the new approach local authorities will be responsible for making the application to the family courts, “shielding the families involved from the burden of initiating proceedings and meeting legal costs”.

The ministry will fund the additional costs this will create for local authorities via the New Burdens process.

The MoJ added that the family court ‘review’ stage would allow for detailed consideration of the best interests of any children involved in the case. “It will also provide an opportunity for the perpetrator to make representations as to why they feel they should retain their parental responsibility, in line with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).”

The ministry said that in determining the child’s welfare needs, the family court will apply the factors set out in the ‘welfare checklist’ in the Children Act 1989. “These include the ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child concerned, the impact on the child of any change in circumstances, and how capable each parent is of meeting the child’s needs. The court will also consider any harm the child has suffered or is at risk of suffering.”

It noted that parental responsibility can already be restricted by the court through a range of orders if it is in the best interests of the child.

“In the most serious cases, this can effectively amount to restricting all exercise of parental responsibility,” the MoJ said, adding that these types of orders include Prohibited Steps Orders and Specific Issues Orders and they can be made whether the parent has been convicted of a crime or not.

The family court can also prevent an individual attempting to repeatedly bring issues back before the court as a form of abuse through measures such as a Section 91(14) Order,” the MoJ said.

These orders prohibit an individual from making further applications without the court’s permission, for example in cases where a perpetrator may seek to repeatedly bring a victim back to court as a means of perpetuating their abuse.

The new law will be reviewed after three years.

Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk KC, said: “Our priority will always be to make sure the best interests of children are protected.

“This new law will ensure they are automatically safeguarded against those whose despicable actions have shown them to utterly lack any nurturing and caring instincts.”