By Eniola Amadu
An MP who revealed she became pregnant after being groomed and raped as a teenager has welcomed new government-backed victim reforms, following her campaign to remove parental rights from convicted rapists.
The Labour MP for Bolsover in Derbyshire, Natalie Fleet led the campaign to amend the Victims and Courts Bill.
At the Parliament, reforms aimed at limiting convicted abusers of parental responsibility were discussed.
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The amendments could “finally offer protection” for children and mothers, Fleet said.
The MP became pregnant at the age of 15, after she began seeing an older man stating she believed her pregnancy was her fault.
“I believe that I had done something wrong and never, ever saw myself as a child who was about to give birth to a child.
“I was called a wide range of names and I believe them,”
Fleet grew up on a council estate in Sutton-in-Ashfield in Nottinghamshire, hoping that sharing her story and changes to the law would inspire other women to share their own experiences.
She revealed she had engaged some women who could be affected by the amendments saying “One woman told me about a perpetrator that said ‘I will have parental responsibility for that child, it doesn’t matter if I go to prison or not, I will make sure that I never leave you or the child alone’,”.
She further revealed that mothers “lived in fear” of their rapists “interfering” in their children’s lives, but the amendment will put an “end” to “that fear”.
“It will deliver powerful, lasting change for thousands of women and children and I am delighted that this government has listened to our concerns and acted so swiftly.” She said.
Under the new measures, parental responsibility will be automatically restricted if a child is conceived as a result of rape, with the restriction applying specifically to that child.
The changes will also apply when a parent is convicted of serious sexual offences against any child and receives a prison sentence of four years or more.
Amendments to the bill, which is currently at the committee stage, would limit the rights of such parents to make key decisions about their child’s life, including matters related to education, healthcare, and travel.
In cases where it has not been proven in criminal court that a child was conceived through rape, but the offender has been convicted of rape and a Crown Court determines the child “may have resulted from the rape,” the matter will be referred to the local authority for family court proceedings.
Minister for Victims and Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls, Alex Davies-Jones, said, “These reforms will shield both mothers and children from the heinous actions of predatory parents, as part of our mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade under our Plan for Change.”
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“Rights and safety of children come first”, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy said, noting that the reforms signalled a clear message.
He said, “This government is committed to standing up for victims and ensuring that those who commit the most vile crimes against children are never in a position to cause further harm,”
