§ Sir John StanleyTo ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what steps her Department takes to discharge its obligations in relation to rights of access under Article 21 of the 1980 Hague Convention on International Child Abduction in the circumstances where the left-behind parent is in the UK and the abducted child is with its other parent in a state that has ratified the Hague Convention. [98250]
§ Ms Rosie WintertonArticle 21 of the Hague Convention allows applications via the designated Central Authorities to make arrangements for organising or securing the effective exercise of rights of access. Any parent resident in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, whose child is resident in another Hague Convention country, may apply to the Child Abduction Unit (which discharges the Lord Chancellor's functions as Central Authority under the 1980 Hague Convention). The unit will transmit the application to its counterpart in the other country, monitor the case, liaise with all interested parties and assist as necessary, for example with applications for legal aid.