§ 1. Lieut.-Colonel Liptonasked the Attorney-General whether he has now considered the Report of the Royal Commission on Marriage and Divorce; and what action he is taking thereon.
§ 2. Mr. MacCollasked the Attorney-General whether he will introduce legislation to implement the recommendations in Part V of the Royal Commission on Marriage and Divorce for providing for the welfare of children in matrimonial proceedings.
§ The Attorney-General (Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller)The recommendations made by the Royal Commission cover a very wide and varied field. Many of them would require legislation, for which I can hold out no prospect at present, more particularly as the Commission was far from unanimous on some of the most important of its recommendations. Others, however, can be dealt with by administrative action or by amendments to the rules of court, and my noble Friend the Lord Chancellor is at present considering these recommendations with 682 a view to bringing the necessary amendments before the Supreme Court Rule Committee in due course.
§ Lieut.-Colonel LiptonWhile thanking the Attorney-General for the prospect of something being done by way of altering the rules or by administrative action, may I ask him if he cannot give an assurance that there will be legislation next Session to bring into effect some of the recommendations of the Royal Commission? Is the right hon. and learned Gentleman aware that otherwise many people will regard the Royal Commission as rather a waste of time and money?
§ The Attorney-GeneralAs I said, I can hold out no prospect of legislation at present.
§ Mr. MacCollWill the Attorney-General bear in mind that the very reasons he has advanced are sound reasons for picking out the recommendations affecting children which were unanimously agreed by the Royal Commission and which, if adopted, would do something to help the innocent victims of matrimonial strife who are suffering all the time?
§ The Attorney-GeneralThe recommendation that no decree nisi should be granted until a court is satisfied about the arrangements for the children would, of course, involve legislation, but there is no reason why rules of court should not require any party who is asking for custody to state what arrangement he or she proposes for the care and upbringing of the children concerned. That is a matter that could be dealt with by rules of court.
Mrs. WhiteWould not the right hon. and learned Gentleman agree that there are some points which could be dealt with fairly soon by legislation without entering into the wider controversial issues of the Report? To give one example, there is the position of those separated before 1937, on which there is a strong recommendation and which, in the nature of the case, is an urgent matter for those concerned.
§ The Attorney-GeneralThere are different views as to how controversial that kind of legislation would prove to be. I am afraid I cannot add to what I have already said about the prospect of legislation.