Options Considered
9.The Consultation Paper put forward three options for reform in relation to the acquisition of parental responsibility by unmarried fathers, and views were invited on each, along with a number of subsidiary questions.
10.The Consultation Paper also suggested that the law on the use of scientific tests to determine parentage should be updated to reflect advances in technology and that a statutory presumption of paternity should be introduced. Both of these suggestions are now incorporated in the Family Law Act (Northern Ireland) 2001. Other measures suggested in the Consultation Paper are now contained in the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act (Northern Ireland) 2001.