1. Ginny Jin Said,

   No parents, including yours or mine are perfect. If a license was necessary noone could ever have children.

2. Michael Said,

   It would be more to the point if prospective parents were made to prove that they were morally and financially able to provide for any children before they had any.

3. dolly k , non smoker Said,

   no thats not possible, who decides whats right or not, there is no such think as perfect parents, we have to learn by our mistakes, and besides we all differ so much, what works for one child wont be the best for another,but logic and common sense should tell us, when its safe to leave children or not…answer …never leave young children or teens unnattended, as proven lately….

4. magenta Said,

   Anyone can pass a test – I’ve got an A-level in French. But when a french bloke asked me for directions yesterday I couldn’t even remember how to say turn left. Just because you pass the theory doesn’t mean you can put it into practise in reality.
   Everyone makes bad decisions at some point – some are worse than others and some only look bad in hindsight because of what happens next. But one bad decision doesn’t cancel out the years of good parenting before when no harm came to the child.

5. L B Said,

   no thanks, parents get advice and help from an array of sources such as family, friends, literature etc. Parents have to decide how to raise their children themselves, I call it all part of the learning process.

6. Elliot Ness Said,

   I’m with Micheal, you should have to be an adult (18+), have a moral compass, and have the financial means to raise a child.

7. Dr Watson (UK) Said,

   The parents in the news are just the tip of the ice burg. My friend is a foster parent. She has one little lad at the moment, he’s 18 months old, he has a mother who is a heroin addict although she’s now on methadone, he has two half brothers who are being cared for by extended family and mum has another baby on the way. Is this little lad up for adoption? No, not yet, got to give heroin mum addict yet another chance! Going to see how she copes with the baby then see if little lad can go back with her – it’s a sick joke as far as I’m concerned, I know what I’d do with all the babies this junkie pops out and I know what I’d do to her to stop it happening again. Sorry for the rant 17pdr .

8. lusu Said,

   Yeah we could all dress in grey boiler suits and have the government find mating couples for society, all others being sterilized. Don’t be so ridiculous ar$eh%le.

9. CAROL W Said,

   Bad idea. A bit too Big Brother for my liking.
   There are far more good parents out there than you are suggesting

10. anne s Said,

    who would judge them , the growing army of middle class idiots who live in ivory towers
    only the rich and pompous would pass and they make the worst parents of all becase they breed their nastyness into their bratts

11. stanthemansmum Said,

    And where is the book that tells us all how to be good parents? what will work for one child will be completely wrong for another! All parents make mistakes – the good ones learn from them, the others just carry on making the same mistakes over and over again – that is the way of the world!

    And what are you going to do if the parent doesn’t pass the test? Put the baby back? Are you going to forcibly sterilise those parents who don’t pass the test? What about those parents who are doing a great job but whose ideas do not fit in with Government policy – ie, the ones who homeschool or choose to send their kids to a school like Sumerhill? Are they going to lose their kids too?

12. pepper Said,

    I found the answers to this question more disturbing than the idea of a ‘Big Brother’ dictating who can or cannot have children. It’s amazing how many people are willing to excuse negligence by saying ‘we all make mistakes’ as if children were some kind of commodity. (I suppose for some they are commodities. They generate a lot of cash in the form of welfare payments.) Madeline disappeared and may be dead. Yet hundreds of people on this site simply continued to excuse the parents saying ‘they made a mistake.’ The poor child Shannon’s mother is hardly the paragon of virtue, nor is she a candidate for ‘Mother of the Year’ (unless one is being sarcastic). Yet with 7 kids by 5 different men, people still excuse her saying ’she made a mistake’. A mistake. One time is a mistake, not 7. What of the lives of the poor children who are brought into this world through no fault of their own and must live miserable lives with uncaring and abusive progenitors. Don’t the children have an inalienable right to decent caring parents who put the welfare of the children above their own? Don’t they deserve loving homes, good nutritious meals and a proper education so that they can learn the skills necessary to be socially responsible and caring adults. Children should not be brought into this world for ‘practice’. They are not toys for the amusement of selfish, self-absorbed people. We do need stricter rules about procreation.

13. bud Said,

    Every person changes when they have a child, that`s a stupid idea, so you give them a test, obviously they will do everything by the book, it`s up to the parents to bring there children up properly if anything happens then it is entirely there problem, some only have kids so they can get out of working and get a house and benefits but no test will prove that. The only thing to do if you are so concerned is to jail unfit parents for a long time

14. sammie Said,

    I think parenting classes should become more wiidespread and available .

    No parent is perfect and as a parent i too make mistakes .

    My son has autisim and being honest i was struggling like hell with him as he is aggressive and being a teenager he is a big lad .

    I took it upon myself to do parenting classes as i had run out of options .

    I learnt some valuable tricks from my course and intend doing another .

    I think all parents should attend parenting courses ..

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