Social and Housing Minister Sophie Hæstorp Andersen has invited political parties in the Danish Parliament (Folketinget) to attend a meeting concerning proposed amendments to the Parental Responsibility Act (Forældreansvarsloven). The meeting, scheduled for Wednesday, September 25th at 1:30 PM, follows sharp criticism from both politicians and experts. The primary concern is that the proposed changes fail to address the central issue that the law was originally intended to rectify, namely parental alienation.

Mette Thiesen, the social spokesperson for the Danish People’s Party (Dansk Folkeparti), expresses hope that the meeting will focus on resolving the evident shortcomings in the legislation: “It is crucial that we can combat parental alienation and ensure that parents do not use their children as weapons in conflicts with the other parent,” she states. Thiesen anticipates that the Minister will acknowledge the challenges and take the necessary steps to rectify the bill’s inadequacies.

The issue of parental alienation has long persisted, as a parent can use harassment and false accusations to gain custody or residence rights over their children. By alleging abuse or refusing to facilitate visitation, a parent can gradually alienate the children from the other parent.

Nina Palesa Bonde, the chair of the Judges’ Assistant Association (Dommerfuldmægtigforeningen), shares similar concerns: “I cannot see how the new law changes the current situation. It continues to allow the use of parental alienation as a means to keep children away from the other parent,” she notes.

Recently, the Danish media outlet B.T. reported on a case involving a 35-year-old man, ‘Mathias’, who found that his ex-wife was granted custody of their two children, despite the Supreme Court’s remarks indicating that she had engaged in parental alienation. This has further cast the proposed amendments in a critical light.

Katrine Daugaard, the social spokesperson for the Liberal Alliance (Liberal Alliance), states that she will ask the Minister about these specific cases during the meeting: “We can clearly see that the bill does not meet our expectations. Parental alienation is still possible, and the consequences for those who engage in it remain unclear,” she comments.

Wednesday’s meeting will serve as a technical review of the proposed legislation, where parties expect to gain comprehensive insights into the submitted responses from various organizations and experts. This will lay the groundwork for further political discussions concerning the necessary adjustments to the proposed changes.