Where the strings attach

Anastasia De Waal, 24 June 2011

The Prime Minister is a well-known advocate of family life: a conviction he has now employed to encourage the British public to stigmatise non-present fathers, writes Therese Wallin. 

Children facing this reality, he argues, run the risk not only of inadequate financial support, but also the deprivation of the unique roles played by each parent.  Alongside cracking down on errant dads, Mr. Cameron believes that commitment should be encouraged by implementing tax breaks for married couples.  A policy which has met with criticism from shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper, who warns it may benefit absent fathers who remarry.

The PM has another proposed fiscal shake-up in the equation: currently payments from absent parents are managed by the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission, but controversially the Government is considering implementing a fee for couples resorting to the Commission, hoping that this will encourage them to reach a solution privately.  The opposition has seized on this proposal too, accusing Mr. Cameron of double standards: simultaneously criticising absent fathers and potentially creating a financial burden on the primary-carer parent seeking financial support.

Looking beyond the financial, Erin Pizzey, founder of the world’s first women’s refuge, has argued that Mr. Cameron is failing to properly grasp the breadth of relevant issues by neglecting factors: from the instances where fathers are being denied the opportunity to play an active role, to the reality that bad behaviour in the separation scenario stretches between both sexes.

The bottom line is that parenting certainly plays a decisive role in the upbringing of children. As such, any criticism must be supported by both solid facts and an awareness of the range of the surrounding circumstances. Ultimately, surely the best way forward is two-fold: firstly, providing ‘broken’ families with advice and support, but also crucially, addressing the roots of later problems by emphasising the responsibilities that come with becoming a parent.  For those unwilling to take on the responsibility of parenting, greater thought on how to avoid becoming a parent in the first place is in order.