Children and Adoption Bill [Lords]

It is a valid concern. When frivolous allegations are made, the courts will be informed of that when the risk assessment is carried out. There are case law examples of the use of such evidence and the case rightly going against the person who made the frivolous allegations. The wording of the new clause implies that a court needs to assess whether there is a risk of harm before a risk assessment could be made. It could create circumstances in which cases of low-level or well-hidden abuse were more likely to slip through. None of us wants that. In addition, new clause 20 means that no regard would be paid to the emotional harm that the child may suffer as a result of a court order. As was stated in Committee, the concept of harm includes not only physical and sexual but emotional abuse. I am surprised that the Opposition try to disregard the effects on the child of emotional abuse. Perhaps it was a genuine omission. Amendment No. 19 would require CAFCASS, when conducting a risk assessment under clause 7, to supply the court with its assessment of the impact that the options available to the court might have on the child. It is sensible for CAFCASS to be asked to consider such issues, and I reassure the hon. Member for Mid-Dorset and North Poole (Annette Brooke) that it is already in a position to do that. Rather than being part of a risk assessment, it would be more appropriate for it to be done as part of a welfare report, which courts can already order under section 7 of the Children Act 1989. A risk assessment would be exactly that: an assessment of the risk of harm to the child that would inform the court’s judgment. In our view, it is appropriate that this should be a focused piece of work looking solely at risk, separate from the wider welfare report that the court may also consider. Having said that, it would also be open to the CAFCASS officer to comment if he or she thought that the court should be informed that a course of action might increase or reduce the risk of harm. I have no doubt that the new clause is well intentioned, and it has been moved well today. The proposals were also discussed in Committee. However, I hope that my comments will have allayed hon. Members’ fears and that the new clause will therefore be withdrawn.