Calls to drug test parents of children 'at risk' in home

Published on Monday 20 March 2006 11:53

SENIOR social workers want parents to be drug-tested to help decide whether children should be taken into care.

The call comes in the wake of recent tragedies involving children being cared for by drug-addicted parents.

The Association of Directors of Social Work (ADSW) has put forward the plan, which would mean parents with a history of drug abuse could be required to undergo tests to see whether they were still taking illegal substances.

Two weeks ago there was an outcry when it emerged two-year-old East Lothian boy Derek Doran died after drinking his parents' methadone. He had been found dead in his bed by his mother last December at their home at Elphinstone, near Tranent.

And last year three-year-old Michael McGarrity was found alone in a Leith flat with the body of his drug-addict mother, having survived for six weeks on scraps of food.

First Minister Jack McConnell has since spoken of his belief that the authorities have often been too slow to remove children from homes where they may be at risk.

He has insisted that the interests of the child should be paramount in all cases, even if that means splitting up a family.

Under the ADSW proposals, children's hearings would be able to order parents to undergo drug tests in cases where children were considered at risk of "significant harm".

The test results could then be taken into consideration in deciding what should happen to the children.

Representatives of the ADSW have discussed the proposals with Education Minister Peter Peacock.

Bernadette Docherty, chairwoman of the ADSW's children and family care committee, said drug tests would be "extremely useful in helping child protection workers to obtain better information on which to make decisions about children".

And ADSW president Colin Mackenzie said Mr Peacock had been interested in the proposal and said he would raise it in Cabinet.

But human rights lawyer John Scott expressed concern about a growing "nanny state" approach to such matters.

He said: "Are we going to see a situation where the state forbids people to have kids unless they fulfil certain conditions?

"Is it possible that in future people who are too fat or who drink more than a specified amount will be barred from looking after children?

"I think this is a well-intentioned idea but it may well be open to abuse in the future and we must guard against that."

Tory justice spokeswoman Margaret Mitchell also voiced some concerns about the proposals. She said: "I have reservations about this becoming a carte blanche approach so that anyone who fails the test is automatically barred from looking after children. It has to be done case by case.

"But the welfare of the child is paramount and it may be that drug testing would be useful in certain cases where there were genuine concerns."

An Executive spokesman confirmed Mr Peacock had met social work leaders. "It was an informal discussion looking at a number of issues and no commitment to introduce the measures has been made."