ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the socio-political context in which child support legislation was introduced, and considers the then Conservative government’s alleged intended trajectories for the Act as outlined in the original White Paper. It shows that the desired attainment of this single objective determined how lone mothers and non-residential fathers were constructed in social, political and legal discourse during the early 1990s. The chapter argues that legal discourse draws upon the knowledge of other discourses in order to promote the idea that father presence and participation is good for the family and for society as a whole. It demonstrates that because of the widespread acceptance that the family and society benefits from father participation lone mothers are expected to ensure that they incorporate a father into their children’s lives. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
