Tangled Metal wrote:If you don't believe that's dangerous then I give you my example of when we took our son to hospital A&E. Treage and the information we had to give the sister included parental responsibility. When we asked what she meant we got it explained from a medical / law pov. She asked if I was present at the registration of birth. It was quiet at work and I was able to leave work to be there. If busy I wouldn't have been there. That would theoretically mean I could not make parental decisions regarding my sons treatment if his mother (my partner who's not married to me) was my present.
That's not actually true. The mother and father can sign separately. If you cannot attend at a registry office at all, for example due to overseas service, you can have your signature on the birth certificate notorised. The main thing is that you have to be legally registered as the father to have parental rights.
If a mother registers a child without the father present, she can deny him parental rights. Of course parental rights can be granted by the courts. But the UK legal system is biased against fathers, especially as single parents.