WEST SOMERSET families who have suffered the agonies of having a child abducted abroad by a parent, attended a Parliamentary debate last week when local MP Rachel Gilmour called for stronger Government action to return children to their homes.

Speaking to the House, Ms Gilmour said hundreds of children were abducted from the UK by a parent every year and that the system designed to protect children was now failing them.

Mrs Gilmour said in many cases, months often elapsed before a first court hearing took place, which was a clear breach of the Hague Conventions, a series of international agreements to help facilitate the return of abducted children.

She said as a result of the delays, a child had often settled into a new country, making returning home even more difficult and entirely undermining the purpose of the convention.

Ms Gilmour wanted the Government to move past ‘diplomatic niceties’ and ensure action was taken to push countries to honour the decisions of UK courts.

She said: “I implore the Government to bring to bear all the diplomatic power that we have on this matter because British children, wherever they are sent or taken, deserve nothing less.

“I am speaking not only on behalf of those in my constituency who brought this injustice to my attention, but on behalf of all victims across the country, whether they be mothers, fathers, or children.

“International parental child abduction is a horrendous experience for anybody to go through, and while I know the Government agrees, it is time for them to move past stern letters, and press for action.

“That is what I will ask of the Minister in my letter to him, and I hope he will agree with me, that this is the time for deeds, not words.”