On Tuesday 15th February Graham Porter, one of the ASP Trustees, travelled to London to attend the evening meeting of the grandly named, All-Party Parliamentary Group on Family Law and the Court of Protection. This little known group of MPs was created to look at issues relating to the jurisdiction of the family courts and is chaired by John Hemming MP with Baroness Deech as vice chair.Described on the invitation as a Speaker Meeting we were obliged to listen to four individuals (one of whom was our own John Baker - another ASP Trustee) holding forth on the following topic: 

Shared Parenting: Panacea or Placebo?  

'Shared parenting is considered today to be one of the most controversial areas in private family law, not because the importance of both parents in a child's life is in doubt but because the exact extent of prescribing contact and the implications this may have on high conflict families raise many serious questions. Does the family justice system need legislation which creates a presumption of shared parenting or is the paramountcy principle the ultimate safeguard against injustice? Why do the family courts  often struggle when faced with the task of ensuring contact between children and their parents and can the current culture in the system really address these issues effectively?' 

So there we had it - apparently a nice simple headline subject to debate, albeit with the expansion wording drawn up either by a latter day Sir Humphrey or a 16 year old junior secretary sans teeth braces. By the time I had read the expansion text several times it was clear that the First Rule of Committee Work was going to triumph: 'Nothing Can Be Done Until We Have Done Everything'. 

So, off we went. The chair John Hemming explained that business in the House meant that he would have to dodge in and out during the evening to vote.  In his absences the chair would be taken by Baroness Deech. John Baker spoke first and strongly defended Shared Parenting.  

He was followed by whispering Dr Samantha Callan who enabled the meeting to hear a gallant 20% of what she said. From the snippets we were blessed with, it was clear that she was comparing shared parenting to Chairman Mao's Great Leap Forward. A remarkable stance given that her introductory blurb on the programme  assured us, amongst other accolades, that prior to joining the Centre for Social Justice she was the Family and Policy adviser in the Conservative Party.

At the end of the meeting I asked why Nature's model of a father and a mother, which had been the norm for several billion years, was now to be viewed as a Great Leap Forward? I received a round of applause and a whispered reply from Dr Samantha, the detail of which was lost somewhere just beyond the top table. They say we meet everybody twice. We will have to keep a wary eye open for this creature. 

The highlight of the evening was the speech from David Hodson. Well-structured and clear in the delivery his common sense was a delight to hear. No doubt his hands-on experience as a deputy District Judge gave him the authority that the previous speaker lacked. 

Finally we heard a workmanlike speech for Dr David Craig CEO of Families Need Fathers. A question session threw up a series of points that will be familiar to all parents who have struggled to remain in contact with their children. As well as asking why Shared Parenting had been described as GLF (above) I asked the chair why he had not offered a definition of Shared Parenting at the start of the meeting, as all four speakers and the questions from the floor showed that everybody seemed to have a different idea of what Shared Parenting actually was? 

Baroness Deech rounded off the evening by first of all lambasting deadbeat dads who seemed to loom large in her worries before thanking the speakers and all who attended. 

All-in-all the evening achieved nothing of consequence. No single result emerged. Where the waffle will end up is unknown. That nobody need take any notice of the event is virtually certain. 

On a slightly positive note John and I managed to distribute a multitude of our leaflets so presumably a few more people know we exist. 

I hail from Straford upon Avon - Much Ado About Nothing. Graham Porter