Path: mit!news From: omega@ibb.berlinet.in-berlin.de Newsgroups: mit.apsintl Subject: ecn/uk:THE CHILD SUPPORT ACT Message-ID: <4ueVc2Hfae@IBB.berlinet.in-berlin.de> Date: 27 Jan 93 16:33:00 MET Sender: news@mit.hacktic.nl Organization: INFO - BOX - BERLIN, West Germany THE CHILD SUPPORT ACT. What is the Child Support Act? Well, in a word, Evil. In more detail, it's the government trying to save money by forcing single parents on benefit to give details of the 'absent parent', then getting maintenance from him. But single parents won't get any extra money: all maintenance will go straight to the treasury. What's more, if single parents refuse to give this information, they can be fined by having their benefit reduced. Before I go any further, if this means you, don't panic! There are things you can do, but I'll get to that later.The next thing is, why does hardly anyone know about the Child Support Act? Of course, it's because it affects some of the poorest and most powerless women in society, around one million single parents on benefit, 97% of whom are women. So although this is one of the most repressive laws passed in recent times, have you seen a massive outcry in the press? A huge public campaign launched? Marches with thousands of protesters? I don't think so. The right wing (and liberals too) have always wanted to stop poor and working class people from having children. And they also hate women who have children by themselves without a man in charge - they always want to invent nuclear families where none exist. Add to that a lot of rightwing resentment about the DSS (Department of Social Security) paying money to single parents on benefit (because of course bringing up children isn't work) and you have a great recipe for some really nasty legislation. According to this new law, from April 1993 the Child Support Agency (working with the DSS, I think) will interview single mothers for personal details of the biological father of their children. They then have very strong powers to track down the absent father, via National Insurance numbers, etc, and force him to pay maintenance, by methods similar to those used for the poll tax: deducting money from wages, calling in the bailiffs or even imprisonment. Even fathers on benefit have to pay a token amount - £2.15, presumably punishment for daring to be poor and reproduce. Before the Child Support Act was passed in July 1992, the wonderful media conducted a great campaign, asking people in the street: 'Do you think fathers should be responsible for paying towards their children's upkeep?' Answer: "Yes, of course!' It even sounds quite feminist. But the fact is, most single mothers who aren't in touch with the biological fathers of their children don't want to be. The plus side of living in the extreme poverty of benefits is not being financially dependent on a man - at least the state doesn't live with you! Forcing single mothers to get maintenance from a man they don't want any link with - a partner they have split up with, or someone who was never a partner at all - could cause many problems, ranging from interference to violence. Exceptions are supposed to be made where there are 'reasonable grounds' to believe 'there would be a risk of her, or any child living with her, suffering harm or undue distress'. But it would be amazing if the DSS always took this seriously. Of course they know women won't want to give this information, so women who don't 'cooperate' can be fined - an outrageous £8.49 (20%) taken off the already starvation-rate of benefit for six months, then 10% taken off for another year. Once again, don't panic, but more of that later.In doing this, the government is mouthing their usual crap about people being trapped in 'dependency culture'. If they were really bothered about that they could provide decent affordable childcare (or 24-hour free childcare, as feminists once dared to dream), so that single parents could go out to work as they mostly want to. But that seems to be out of the question.The Act could be particularly bad for lesbian mothers. If you used self-insemination, it means that sperm donors are suddenly supposed to be fathers and pay maintenance! And if ex-partners are made to pay maintenance, they may decide to try for custody of children, a case which lesbian mothers generally lose. It's also likely to make trouble for Black people, with Child Support investigations possibly combining a bit of immigration snooping. None of this is supposed to come into effect until next April, but with their usual enthusiasm the DSS has already been interviewing women for information, which is illegal. One woman was kept in a locked room for several hours to try to get information from her. And guidelines were recently circulated saying that staff should try to get information from children, such as the number plate of their father's car! The DSS got a bit embarassed about this and withdrew this suggestion, but you can bet they'll give it a go if they can. Well, I could go on for ages about how repressive this is - that because you're poor some DSS official can ask about your sex life and who the father of your child is. And the fact that there's been virtually no protest about this, when it should be a major feminist concern. But then we're getting all too used to the idea that people on benefits have no rights whatsoever - in fact, if you went by the papers you'd think we hardly existed at all. So, as to what you can practically do. . . Take a friend with you to DSS interviews (you are entitled to) Take notes or tape the interview. Get the interviewer's name and report any threats made. Use the Short Birth Certificate - it's free and doesn't name the father. Tell people how evil this new law is ! At DSS interviews. . . Before April 1993, the DSS has no right to get any details of the father, such as name, address, workplace, photo. After April 1993, as above, but you'll need reasons for refusing, for example: It was a one-night stand, you don't know his name, You don't know where he is or he's left the country. It may cause risk of harm or undue distress. You had more than one partner He's violent and may take it out on you or the children Finally, if you want more information or to join the campaign against the Child Support Act , contact: Tottenham Claimants Union, c/o Haringey Unwaged Centre, 72 West Green Rd, London N15, tel: 081 802 9804. Or national campaign c/o Kings Cross Women's Centre, 71 Tonbridge St, London WC1H 9DZ tel: London 071 837 7509, Bristol 0272 426608, Manchester 061 344 0758. But watch out! a friend of ours went to Kings Cross Women's Centre for info and was heavily pressed with speeches and requests for her name and phone number!