He was doing so well up to now.

Shared parenting doesn't benefit children? What utter rubbish! But, it doesn't surprise me, sadly.

and it won't address the problem of fathers who have no intention of supporting or seeing their children.

Why are absent mothers who don't support their kids not a problem not a problem?

CSA should then use their available resources to track down fathers who have no intention of paying a single penny towards the upkeep of their children.

What ever happened to political correctness.
Doesn't take much on this site to resort to men bashing does it.
So the CSA only exists to chase down fathers. That will be why when I phoned them to query why ex stopped paying they automatically jumped to the conclusion that I had phoned up to pay. It never entered their head that I was the RP.

Shared parenting can only work in certain circumstance...my ex moved to the other end of the country, not for work (he relocated his business there) but to be with the woman he was having an affair with. Therefore...how could he "share" school runs, dental appointments, riding lessons, football coaching etc from 3 hours drive away?
Before he went I begged him to stay in our vicinity to do exactly this..so I wouldnt have to have all the burden but he wouldnt have it!
So...in some instances shared parenting CANT work so in effect cant be mandatory on separation.
Perhaps there should be a bill stating that the NRP stays in the home town, promises not to critisise the RP about their parenting, not to rub the "affair" in their face and to help look after the kids?? Lol...nah I dont think it'll ever happen either!!

justgoaway wrote:

Shared parenting can only work in certain circumstance...my ex moved to the other end of the country, not for work (he relocated his business there) but to be with the woman he was having an affair with. Therefore...how could he "share" school runs, dental appointments, riding lessons, football coaching etc from 3 hours drive away?
Before he went I begged him to stay in our vicinity to do exactly this..so I wouldnt have to have all the burden but he wouldnt have it!
So...in some instances shared parenting CANT work so in effect cant be mandatory on separation.
Perhaps there should be a bill stating that the NRP stays in the home town, promises not to critisise the RP about their parenting, not to rub the "affair" in their face and to help look after the kids?? Lol...nah I dont think it'll ever happen either!!

Obviously there would be exceptions, but it would work for enough people to make a significant difference to government spending.

This is the article in which he calls for

runaway dads were stigmatised, and the full force of shame was heaped upon them. They should be looked at like drink drivers, people who are beyond the pale.

Great care needs to be taken here - there is a massive difference between those parents who do simply disappear and don't take an active role in their children's lives, and those who are prevented from being a part of their children's lives. And I agree with James here - its wrong to highlight fathers alone.

There are many fathers in the same position as James - where the mother has chosen not to be a part of the children's lives (for whatever reason), surely it should be absent parents that should be held accountable, not just fathers?

One undercurrent I did pick up on in Mr Cameron's article was that single parents are still regarded as a drain on society. Hands up if you actually chose to be a single parent? I certainly didnt - I would have liked nothing more than for my daughters to have grown up in a home where both parents were, to have the stability of having thier parents in a caring relationship, and for them to reap the rewards that that would give them. But - as we all know, life is a bit Topsy-turvey at times, and here I am, bringing up my children on my own, with no support (financial and otherwise) from their father. Am I drain on society? I would like to think not. I work, I provide for my kids the very best I can, I am determined that my children shouldn't miss out simply because I am a single parent. My younger daughter came home the other week, with a letter detailing a residential school trip next year - the aim of the trip is confidence-building, exactly what she needs after having to deal with her father moving to Australia with his new family. She said she didn't want to go because it was expensive! Now, there is no way my kids are going to miss out simply because their father has chosen to no longer contribute financially towards them - so she is going

Anyway I digress.

To write and publish such an emotive article/political speech on a day like Father's Day was crass, cheap and extremely insensitive. The vast majority of NRP fathers are decent, hard-working, loving Dads who do their upmost to contribute to and be a significant part of their children's lives - but it cant be easy when when you don't see them on a daily basis and have to make do with every other weekend.

So while Cameron has chosen to congratulate

single mothers, who do a heroic job against all odds

- I would like to point that that single fathers do an equally heroic job - but yet are often forgotten about.

Hear hear Rubytuesday! Excellent post