Oral Question·Northern Ireland Office
“What progress has been made on the restoring devolved government in Northern Ireland.”
Tabled: 30 January 2018Answered: 7 February 2018
Asked by
Bob Blackman
Conservative — Harrow East
Answering Minister
the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Answer from Hansard
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Alex Davies-Jones)
The welfare of the child must be the paramount consideration for family courts, which should follow the welfare checklist, as set out in the Children Act 1989. Our new approach to private law proceedings—the pathfinder pilot courts—focuses on problem solving, putting greater emphasis on the voice of the child, but we are acutely aware that more needs to be done.