NEWS
campusreview.com.au
Licence to parent?
Researcher warns against regulating parenthood.
By Dallas Bastian
P
arental licensing has long been mulled over by academic
philosophers and political scientists, but a social work
researcher says the idea is fraught with problems.
James Cook University’s Dr Frank Ainsworth reviewed
international studies on parental licensing – the idea that parenting
competence should be demonstrated prior to adults achieving full
parental rights – and Australian statistics on children in care.
Ainsworth’s review showed that while the intent was based on
concern for children, the problems such a licence would come
with made it unworkable and open to abuse.
The biggest issue? Its potential to become a concealed policy
of eugenics.
Under parental licensing, a pregnant woman may be allowed to
give birth but not raise the baby – unless she has a licence. And the
denial of parenting rights would almost certainly fall more heavily
on people with higher rates of socioeconomic disadvantage,
Ainsworth said.
“You have to remember that denying a parental licence is not
the same as denying any other kind of licence, such as a driving
licence,” he said. “There are no alternatives to parenting a child.
Parenting denied is final.”
Another problem Ainsworth raised was the question of how a
testing system would deal with potential parents with an intellectual
disability, those with a physical disability, those who are illiterate and
migrants who cannot speak English.
“Disadvantaged sections of the community, and their supporters,
would be loud in their opposition to any form of parental licensing,”
he said.
Further, should a parental licensing scheme ever get up and
running, there wouldn’t be enough people wanting to adopt,
Ainsworth added.
“On the evidence and discussion I’ve reviewed, it’s hard to see
parental licensing serving anyone well, especially the children it
would be intended to help.” ■
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