Children and Adoption Bill [HL]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Northbourne, for raising an important issue that he continually keeps us focused on: our responsibilities and obligations as parents, and particularly the rights of fathers, which is an issue of great concern to him. I will not rise to the challenge of saying what we are going to do about unmarried fathers, because that is to suggest that there is a problem that lies only with people who happen to be unmarried. There are many stable relationships where marriage is not part of the relationship.