Skip to main content
Site logo

Main navigation

  • Home
  • About Esther McVey
  • News
  • In Parliament
  • Contact
  • Support for Ukraine
Site logo

Esther McVey raises delays in the Family court in the House of Commons

  • Tweet
Friday, 20 May, 2022

More must be done to tackle the delays in resolving cases before the family courts, Esther McVey has said.

The Tatton MP said delays have increased significantly due to Covid and long waits were creating additional stress for the families, at what was already a very difficult time.

Speaking in Parliament she called for action to address the lengthy wait times to ease the burden on all involved.

Ms McVey said: “Delays in family courts were already far too long before Covid and that problem has only got worse since then and that often leads to a parent not being able to see their child in the meantime. This point has been raised to me by many parents in my constituency. Tackling these delays should be a priority.”

 Justice Minister Dominic Raab said about half of all cases before family court were safeguarding or domestic abuse cases that needed to be overseen by a judge.

He added: “The rest, frankly, should by and large be dispensed with before court through ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) of one sort or another. We have talked about considering making mediation compulsory, but crucially we need the incentives or disincentives for early resolution to be unequivocal.”

Ms McVey said while out of court mediation or other dispute resolutions worked for some families, it was not suitable for many others. She said the courts were sometimes the only way to resolve complex or ongoing issues and said she would be speaking with Government ministers to see what else can be done to tackle the time delays. 

She added: “If there is a safeguarding issue then it is absolutely right that the authorities get all the information they need to keep people safe and that can take time. However, long delays should not be the norm in other cases, especially in family court where children are involved. I know from speaking to constituents how these delays are affecting them and something needs to be done.”

  • Westminster News

You may also be interested in

Esther McVey asks the Treasury to consider further fuel duty cuts

Wednesday, 29 June, 2022

Esther McVey has urged Government to do more to reduce the price at the pumps and cut fuel by at least 20 pence a litre.

The Tatton MP said it would help both families and businesses, especially ones with large fuel costs such as hauliers.

Show only

  • Articles
  • Local News
  • Opinions
  • Reports
  • Speeches
  • Speeches in Parliament
  • Westminster News

Esther McVey MP for Tatton

Footer

  • About RSS
  • Accessibility
  • Cookies
  • Privacy
  • About Esther McVey
  • In Parliament
ConservativesPromoted by Caroline O'Rourke on behalf of Esther McVey, both at 21 Canute Place, Knutsford, Cheshire WA16 6BQ
Copyright 2022 Esther McVey MP for Tatton. All rights reserved.
Powered by Bluetree