To ask His Majesty's Government what role they intend Best Start Family Hubs to play in identifying and supporting mothers experiencing perinatal and postnatal mental health difficulties.

To ask His Majesty's Government what role they intend Best Start Family Hubs to play in identifying and supporting mothers experiencing perinatal and postnatal mental health difficulties.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of expanding perinatal services in the community, including increasing provision of (a) specialist perinatal mental health services and (b) support for women with moderate, severe or complex needs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of expanding perinatal services in the community, including increasing provision of (a) specialist perinatal mental health services and (b) support for women with moderate, severe or complex needs.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the newly expanded Women’s Employment Ambassador role will take to support new mothers returning to work.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the newly expanded Women’s Employment Ambassador role will take to support new mothers returning to work.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing pregnant women and new mothers diagnosed with cancer to defer statutory maternity leave until the completion of their treatment.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of allowing pregnant women and new mothers diagnosed with cancer to defer statutory maternity leave until the completion of their treatment.

Motion that this House has considered children in child contact arrangements. Agreed to on question.

Motion that this House has considered children in child contact arrangements. Agreed to on question.

I beg to move,

That this House has considered children in child contact arrangements.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Murrison, and to lead a debate on putting children first in child contact arrangements, an issue that is of great importance to me, to my constituents and to...

I beg to move,

That this House has considered children in child contact arrangements.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Murrison, and to lead a debate on putting children first in child contact arrangements, an issue that is of great importance to me, to my constituents and to...

I commend the hon. Lady for securing this debate on a very complex issue. There were elements of the Courts and Tribunals Bill that were impossible to support, but it also sought to address the issue of a child’s consent in contact arrangements and, importantly, the need for the child’s...

I commend the hon. Lady for securing this debate on a very complex issue. There were elements of the Courts and Tribunals Bill that were impossible to support, but it also sought to address the issue of a child’s consent in contact arrangements and, importantly, the need for the child’s...

I completely agree that the child’s voice must be heard and is too often overlooked.

Some of these so-called experts lack proper qualifications and are not regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council. Changes proposed in 2025 to address the issue of unregulated psychologists have been criticised as too weak...

I completely agree that the child’s voice must be heard and is too often overlooked.

Some of these so-called experts lack proper qualifications and are not regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council. Changes proposed in 2025 to address the issue of unregulated psychologists have been criticised as too weak...

I thank my hon. Friend for bringing this debate to the House and for mentioning the so-called experts. We know that accusations of so-called parental alienation are too often used against mothers who are trying to protect their children, but because so few family law cases are publicly available, we...

I thank my hon. Friend for bringing this debate to the House and for mentioning the so-called experts. We know that accusations of so-called parental alienation are too often used against mothers who are trying to protect their children, but because so few family law cases are publicly available, we...

I thank my hon. Friend for her work on the issue. I completely agree that unfortunately we are seeing far, far too many mothers who are disbelieved and have had their children removed from them without any basis for doing so at all. Lives are being destroyed.

If a parent complains,...

I thank my hon. Friend for her work on the issue. I completely agree that unfortunately we are seeing far, far too many mothers who are disbelieved and have had their children removed from them without any basis for doing so at all. Lives are being destroyed.

If a parent complains,...

I completely endorse the hon. Lady’s calls. I have talked about how we need reform to the family courts. Will she support my calls for the Government to support family contact centres? In my constituency, the Woking Family Contact Centre has been run by volunteers for 25 years, which is...

I completely endorse the hon. Lady’s calls. I have talked about how we need reform to the family courts. Will she support my calls for the Government to support family contact centres? In my constituency, the Woking Family Contact Centre has been run by volunteers for 25 years, which is...

I have raised with Baroness Levitt not only the lack of access to child contact centres but the cost of access. It appears that many of them are unregulated, so I thank the hon. Gentleman for raising that issue.

To conclude, everybody wants to see the family justice system evolve to...

I have raised with Baroness Levitt not only the lack of access to child contact centres but the cost of access. It appears that many of them are unregulated, so I thank the hon. Gentleman for raising that issue.

To conclude, everybody wants to see the family justice system evolve to...

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Murrison. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Alison Hume) and commend her for securing such an important debate.

I want to start by reflecting on the stories that she shared—stories of children feeling unheard and of...

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Murrison. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Scarborough and Whitby (Alison Hume) and commend her for securing such an important debate.

I want to start by reflecting on the stories that she shared—stories of children feeling unheard and of...

It is true that the Government do not recognise parental alienation and the syndrome, but courts too often do. In fact, a report released just yesterday by the campaign group Right to Equality that analysed language used in family court judgments found that over 70% of those judgments used victim-blaming...

It is true that the Government do not recognise parental alienation and the syndrome, but courts too often do. In fact, a report released just yesterday by the campaign group Right to Equality that analysed language used in family court judgments found that over 70% of those judgments used victim-blaming...

I was discussing that report with Baroness Levitt yesterday, so it is one that I am conscious of and one that we will be looking at.

The Family Justice Council has published guidance to assist courts in handling cases of this nature. Importantly, the guidance recognises that there can be entirely...

I was discussing that report with Baroness Levitt yesterday, so it is one that I am conscious of and one that we will be looking at.

The Family Justice Council has published guidance to assist courts in handling cases of this nature. Importantly, the guidance recognises that there can be entirely...

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to provide additional financial support to low-income women experiencing food insecurity during pregnancy and the postnatal period, beyond existing maternity and low-income support schemes.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to provide additional financial support to low-income women experiencing food insecurity during pregnancy and the postnatal period, beyond existing maternity and low-income support schemes.

One in four women in England experience mental ill health during pregnancy and postpartum, with inequalities in risk, care quality and access to support.

One in four women in England experience mental ill health during pregnancy and postpartum, with inequalities in risk, care quality and access to support.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to help to minimise the potential impact on mothers who are prosecuted for their child’s truancy from school.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will take steps to help to minimise the potential impact on mothers who are prosecuted for their child’s truancy from school.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her department has made of the potential impact on mothers who are prosecuted for their child’s truancy from school.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her department has made of the potential impact on mothers who are prosecuted for their child’s truancy from school.

To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of (1) maternity patients receive continuity of care in England, and (2) NHS trusts in England offer continuity of care to maternity patients.

To ask His Majesty's Government what proportion of (1) maternity patients receive continuity of care in England, and (2) NHS trusts in England offer continuity of care to maternity patients.