First, as the Minister rightly made clear, to prevent the provision from becoming mere political correctness, it must not cause inordinate delay. Almost every Member who has spoken has agreed that the existing system is failing children miserably. We all want to speed up the procedure. That subsection could be used by vindictive birth parents again and again to hold up perfectly valid adoptions. Friend raises an important point.
Friend makes an excellent point.
There is genuine worry about that. Of course, I have only his word for that. Lawyers whom I have asked do not know, either. It would be unfortunate if lawyers could seize on such a vague phrase and read different meanings into it. The second of the five points on my checklist relates to the need to protect damaged children, about which the Minister spoke at length.