United Kingdom · Record · Petition
Petition 776054
Give police emergency powers to return children withheld by a parent
Introduced
4 July 2026
Last action
—
Status
48 signatures
Sponsors
—
Subjects
Discovery layer
Source updated
27 August 2026
Summary
We call on the Government to amend the law to grant police immediate emergency powers to recover a child when a parent withholds them in breach of an active Court Order or shared care agreement. Currently, when a parent breaks a family court order and refuses to return a child, the police often refuse to intervene, calling it a "civil matter". Parents are forced to wait months for new court hearings while their children are alienated and legal orders are ignored with impunity. The law has a dangerous gap. We need emergency police enforcement powers to protect children and uphold court decisions immediately, instead of allowing parents to break the law while waiting for future court.
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Sources
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- Official source: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/776054
- Open data entity: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/776054.json