And now from across the pond.. Dads - the new terrorists?

http://www.thisisthenortheast.co.uk/...terrorists.php

Dads - the new terrorists?

Tough new laws have been drawn up to tackle fathers who refuse to pay for
their children. But are the powers a step too far? Joe Willis talks to a
leading North- East solicitor who thinks they are
IT COULD almost be anti-terror legislation - the power to take money from
bank accounts without consent and without a court order, the power to freeze
accounts, seize the proceeds of house sales, impose curfews, and confiscate
passports and driving licences.
However, this is not a new law to help MI5 tackle extremism. The powers are
contained within the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill and have been
designed to help the authorities recover money from non-resident parents -
usually fathers - owed for their children's upkeep.
The Government announced a major overhaul of the child maintenance system
last year and the legislation is currently working its way through
Parliament and could be given Royal Assent within weeks. The bill will see
the much-maligned Child Support Agency (CSA) replaced with a new more
powerful body, the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission (C-MEC).
Few people would question the need to abolish the CSA, which has been dogged
by controversy and complaints ever since its launch in 1993. However, a
leading North-East solicitor has warned the extent of the powers due to be
handed to the new commission will only increase the heartache for separating
families - and lead to even greater confrontation and friction.
Kim Fellowes, from North-East-based solicitors Dickinson Dees, sits on the
National Committee of Resolution, a 5,000-strong association of family
lawyers committed to the non-confrontational resolution of marital and
domestic disputes. She is chair of Resolution's child support sub-committee,
which means she has become a national expert on the CSA - and has been
involved in legislation battles in the House of Commons and Lords over the
CSA and child support, advising both Government and Opposition.

Miss Fellowes believes officials at the Department for Work and Pensions are
secretly delighted that the bill has been given such an easy ride through
Parliament and should emerge relatively unscathed.
"These new powers will affect every single family going through separation
in the North-East," she says.
She believes the commission's ability to take maintenance payments without
prior approval from a court could prove extremely controversial. She says:
"For fathers, this means the safety net of the court has been removed.
Someone might not agree that they have been sent to prison for a criminal
offence, but at least they know they have been tried before a court.
The difference here is that there is no court scrutiny.
"And if the father believes he is being unfairly pursued or harassed, that
could mean a severe backlash for the mother as she will get the blame. The
risk is that even a separation that was previously fairly amicable could
become strained."
One of the most worrying aspects, according to Miss Fellowes, is that the
powers are being afforded to the successor of an organisation like the CSA -
which has a well-documented history of making mistakes. One report compiled
during the agency's early days found errors in 86 per cent of cases.
Improvements were promised. But a fresh report carried out by the National
Audit Office in 2006 revealed a one-in-five chance that payments were
inaccurate. Miss Fellowes and others believe the powers included in the bill
are so momentous that they may even breach human rights regulations. She
predicts strenuous legal challenges once the powers begin to be applied,
possibly in the autumn.
She also raises concerns about other aspects of the legislation which could
impact on families in the region. The Government wants to encourage
separating couples to make their own maintenance arrangements. The new
commission will be responsible for raising awareness about the importance of
maintenance payments and will provide an information and guidance service to
help parents make effective arrangements. It is envisaged that such services
will actually be provided by voluntary organisations, such as Citizens
Advice.
With already tight budgets, it is feared the voluntary sector will not be in
a position to provide the necessary help. The commission will also have the
power to write off arrears owed by some fathers without paying any
compensation to the carer who has lost out.
Since the CSA's launch, many thousands of cases have built up where money
can never be recovered because the CSA failed to take enforcement action
within the a period six years of the payments being due.
"The Government has got a lot of bad publicity in the past over the CSA and
now it wants to reduce its workload - and the outstanding debt owed to the
CSA of £3.3bn. To do this they are sending people packing by getting them to
make their own arrangements and will be writing off arrears," she says.
THE Department for Work and Pensions declined to comment on the criticism of
the bill. However, a spokesman pointed to the latest figures which show the
CSA collected more than £62m from nonresident parents of North-East and
North Yorkshire children during the past financial year. More than 50,000
children living in the region are now benefiting from maintenance payments
to their carer, officials say. They claim recent improvements in the CSA
have formed a base from which the new commission can build from.
Speaking about the figures, which were published at the end of a three-year
drive to improve the CSA, the organisation's chief executive and the new
child maintenance commissioner designate, Stephen Geraghty, said: "The Child
Support Agency and its operational improvement plan has delivered real
improvements to the child maintenance system in areas such as customer
service, compliance and collection and this creates stable foundations on
which the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission can build. In the
meantime, the CSA will continue to pursue parents who evade their financial
responsibilities. Our message to them is clear. Act now or we will."

"Dusty" wrote in


Dads - the new terrorists?

Tough new laws have been drawn up to tackle fathers who refuse to pay for
their children. But are the powers a step too far?

Let me get this straight!

If you get divorced, the state automatically gains total control over your
life?

"DB" wrote in message
...

"Dusty" wrote in


Dads - the new terrorists?

Tough new laws have been drawn up to tackle fathers who refuse to pay for
their children. But are the powers a step too far?

Let me get this straight!

If you get divorced, the state automatically gains total control over your
life?

Essentially (especially when there are children involved) you are correct.

But don't take my word for it, Google around and see for yourself. And ask
the folks here what's happened to them. Hell, ask me and I'll tell ya too.

There's nothin' quite like being branded a criminal when you've doing
nothing wrong.

"Dusty" wrote in

There's nothin' quite like being branded a criminal when you've doing
nothing wrong.

A father should never have to be a defendant in parental issues!