Vote Bundle Text (940622-07)

Amendments proposed to the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Bill [Lords] - continued	House of Commons

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Recovery orders in cases involving allegations of domestic violence or a potential risk to the child

Mrs Cheryl Gillan
Mr Dominic Grieve
Mrs Eleanor Laing
Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown
Mr Hilton Dawson

NC7

To move the following Clause:—

'After Section 34 of the Family Law Act 1986 insert—

"34A The use of recovery orders in cases involving allegations of domestic violence or a potential risk to the child

(1) If an applicant claims that his partner has abducted a child of the family, the court may grant a recovery order if the applicant already has a residence order in his name.

(2) If there is no residence order in favour of either parent, the court may grant a recovery order,

(3) the order under subsection (2) will require both parties to attend court within 24 hours of the discovery of the child, or the first working day thereafter, in this instance. Before returning the child to the applicant or giving the applicant any information as to the whereabouts of the child, the police must—

(a) check their records to see if either party has committed acts of violence;

(b) check to see if either party is included on the register of domestic violence perpetrators; and

(c) having located the child without notifying the applicant of the child's whereabouts, make enquiries with regard to the child's welfare.

(4) Following the award of an order under subsection (2)—

(a) if records show that the applicant has a history of violence or the police have concerns about the welfare of the child if the child is returned to the applicant, the police will—

(i) not remove the child from the respondent,

(ii) advise the respondent to seek legal representation, and

(iii) notify the court of their action immediately,

(b) if records show that the respondent has a history of violence and the applicant has no history of violence, the police will return the child to the applicant and notify the court,

(c) if there is no record of violence and no reason to believe that the respondent or the child is at risk, the police will return the child to the applicant,

(d) if records show that both the applicant and the respondent have a history of violence, the police will immediately seek further instructions from the court and, if necessary, take appropriate steps to protect the child.

(5) The court shall not grant interim residence or contact orders unless there is evidence that a party is wilfully refusing to attend court.

(6) The court shall not disclose the address of a women's refuge publicly or give this information to any applicant or respondent or to their legal representatives.".'

Mandatory risk assessment checklist

Mrs Cheryl Gillan
Mr Dominic Grieve
Mrs Eleanor Laing
Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown

NC8

To move the following new Clause:—

'After section 8 in PArt II of hte Children 1989 insert—

"8B Mandatory risk assessment checklist

(1) When determining whether the child will be safe if contact or residence is granted to the abusive party, the court shall, so far as is practicable, have regard to the following matters—

(a) the nature and severity of the ill-treatment;

(b) how recently the ill-treatment occurred;

(d) the risk of further ill-treament occurring;

(e) the physical, sexual or emotional harm inflicted on the child or harm suffered by the child as a result of seeing or hearing ill-treatment of another person;

(f) whether the other party to the proceedings

(i) considers that the child will be safe while the abusive part has residence of, or contact with, the child; and

(ii) consents to the abusive party having residence of, or contact with, the child;

(g) the wishes of the child, if the child is able to express them, having regard to the age and maturity of the child;

(h) any steps taken by the abusive party to prevent further ill-treatment from occurring;

(i) any other matters as the court considers relevant.".'.

Definition of domestic relationship

Mrs Cheryl Gillan
Mr Dominic Grieve
Mrs Eleanor Laing
Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown
Mr Hilton Dawson

NC9

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) For the purposes of this Act, a person is in a domestic relationship with another person, if the person—

(a) is a partner of the other person; or

(b) is a family member of the other person; or

(d) has a close personal relationship with the other person.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1)(c) of this section, a person is not regarded as sharing a household with another person by reason only of the fact that—

(a) the person has—

(i) a landlord-tenant relationship; or

(ii) an employer-employee relationship; or

(iii) an employee-employee relationship—

with that other person; and

(b) they occupy a common dwellinghouse (whether or not other people also occupy that dwellinghouse).

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1)(d) of this section, a person is not regarded as having a close personal relationship with another person by reason only of the fact that the person has—

(a) an employer-employee relationship; or

(b) an employee-employee relationship—

with that other person.

(4) With limiting the matters to which a Court may have regard in determining, for the purposes of subsection (1)(d) of this section, whether a person has a close personal relationship with another person, the Court must have regard to—

(a) the nature and intensity of the relationship, and in particular—

(i) the amount of time the persons spend together;

(ii) the place or places where that time is ordinarily spent;

(iii) the manner in which that time is ordinarily spent;—

but it is not necessary for there to be a sexual relationship between the persons:

(b) the duration of the relationship.'.

Domestic Violence Advocacy Service

Mrs Cheryl Gillan
Mr Dominic Grieve
Mrs Eleanor Laing
Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown
Mr David Heath
Sandra Gidley

NC10

To move the following Clause:—

'(1) In this section, "Voluntary organisation" means a charity or an organisation operating on a not-for-profit basis.

(2) The Secretary of State shall establish, maintain and develop a national service known as the Domestic Violence Advocacy Service for the purpose of promoting the availability to victims of services of the descriptions specified in subsection (3) and, in particular, for securing (within the resources made available, and priorities set, in accordance with subsection (6)) that victims have access to services that effectively meet their needs.

(3) The descriptions of services referred to in subsection (1) are—

(a) the provision of help in developing and implementing a plan for ensuring the safety of the victim and the safety of the children of the victim as a priority;

(b) the provision of general information, relevant to the victim, about the law and legal system and the availability of legal services,

(c) the provision of help by the giving of advice as to how the law applies in the particular circumstances of the victim,

(d) the provision of information as to the availability to the victim of relevant support services offered by other agencies,

(e) the provision of assistance in accessing services relevant to the victim that are offered by other agencies,

(f) the provision of help in relation to legal proceedings, whether in the family, criminal or civil courts.

(4) The services of the descriptions specified in subsection (3) shall be accessible to victims at any hour and on any day and shall be provided by persons of the same sex as the victim where requested by the victim.

(5) The Secretary of State shall establish and maintain a fund known as the Domestic Violence Advocacy Service Fund from which services of the descriptions specified in subsection (3) shall be funded as part of the Domestic Violence Advocacy Service.

(6) The Secretary of State shall prepare a code setting out the criteria according to which he will decide how to fund services as part of the Domestic Violence Advocacy Service.

(7) When preparing the code referred to in subsection (6) the Secretary of State shall consult all relevant bodies (and, in particular, voluntary organisations) who are able to communicate the views of victims of domestic violence.

(8) The Secretary of State may accredit, or authorise others to accredit, voluntary organisations providing services of the descriptions specified in subsection (3); and any system of accreditation shall include provision for the monitoring of the services provided by accredited organisations and for the withdrawal of accreditation from any providing services of unsatisfactory quality.

(9) The Secretary of State may fund services as part of the Domestic Violence Advocacy Service by—

(a) entering into contracts with voluntary organisations for the provision of services by them,

(b) making payments to voluntary organisations in respect of the provision of services by them,

(c) making grants or loans to voluntary organisations to enable them to provide, or facilitate the provision of, services,

(d) establishing and maintaining voluntary organisations to provide, or facilitate the provision of, services,

(e) making grants or loans to individuals to enable them to obtain services,

(f) doing anything else which he considers appropriate for funding services.

(10) The Secretary of State may by order require accredited bodies providing services of the descriptions specified in subsection (3) to discharge those services in accordance with the order.'.