Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act (Northern Ireland)

Tests for determining paternity

65.—(1) Part III of the Family Law Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 1977 (NI 17) (provisions for use of blood tests in determining paternity) shall be amended as follows.

(2) In Article 8 (power of court to require use of blood tests)—

(a)for paragraphs (1A) and (1B) there shall be substituted—

“(1A) Tests required by a direction under this Article may only be carried out by a body which has been accredited for the purposes of this Article by—

(a)the Lord Chancellor; or

(b)a body appointed by him for the purpose.”;

(b)in paragraph (2)—

(i)for “person responsible for” there shall be substituted “individual”; and

(ii)after “this Article” there shall be inserted “(“the tester”)”;

(c)in paragraph (4), for “the person who made the report” there shall be substituted “the tester”; and

(d)in paragraph (5)—

(i)for “the person responsible for carrying out the tests taken for the purpose of giving effect to the direction, or any” there shall be substituted “the tester, or any other”;

(ii)for “that person” there shall be substituted “the tester or that other person”; and

(iii)after “and where” there shall be inserted “the tester or”.

(3) In Article 9 (consents, etc., required for the taking of blood samples), in paragraph (3), for “, if the person who has the care and control of him consents.” there shall be substituted—

“(a)if the person who has the care and control of him consents; or

(b)where that person does not consent, if the court considers that it would be in his best interests for the sample to be taken.”.

(4) In Article 10(1) (power to provide for the manner of giving effect to direction for use of blood tests)—

(a)in sub-paragraph (a), for the words from “such medical practitioners” to the end there shall be substituted “registered medical practitioners or members of such professional bodies as may be prescribed by the regulations;”, and

(b)for sub-paragraph (e) there shall be substituted—

“(e)prescribe conditions which a body must meet in order to be eligible for accreditation for the purposes of Article 8;”.

(5) The amendments made by this section shall not have effect in relation to any proceedings pending at the coming into operation of this section.