Children and Adoption Bill [HL]

I thank the Minister for his reply. There is scope for us to confer outside these four walls when the Grand Committee has finished. I take note of the quotation that he read from Lord Justice Wall, but it is necessary to look at what statute law says. The Children Act talks about contact. The Minister accuses me of citing an extreme case—the postcard once a year—but it is not by any means unusual to have that kind of minimal contact ordered by a court. A court does not feel constrained in making an order like that; nothing constrains a court from doing so, even if it is simply in the face of emotional requests by the resident parent, who for one reason or another does not want the non-resident parent in his or her life any more. All manner of spurious and bad reasons can be produced for restricting contact. Very often—this is not simply anecdotal, but is a common occurrence—the court makes an order based on little hard evidence. The strengthening of the burden of proof—the re-reversal of the burden of proof, if I can put it that way—is what I seek to achieve in the amendments. I shall study carefully what the Minister said, and I am sure that we will wish to return to the subject at a later stage. Meanwhile, I thank all Members of the Committee who have contributed to the debate; I value their contributions greatly. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.