Smacking children should be banned in England and Northern Ireland, doctors say

Published

11 months ago

April 17, 2024

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Smacking children should be banned throughout the UK as current laws are “unjust and dangerously vague” – making it harder to identify when youngsters are being abused, children’s doctors have said.

In a report, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) is urging ministers in England and Northern Ireland to follow the lead of Wales, where lawmakers banned any type of corporal punishment including smacking, hitting, slapping and shaking in March 2022.

A similar ban has been in place in Scotland since November 2020.

Professor Andrew Rowland, a consultant paediatrician and RCPCH officer for child protection, said: “The laws around physical punishment as they stand are unjust and dangerously vague.

“They create a grey area in which some forms of physical punishment may be lawful, and some are not.”

He said he was “regularly faced with situations where it is alleged that physical punishment has been used against a child” but that the “vague nature of the laws make it extremely challenging” to talk to families about what the rules are and therefore more difficult to talk about the best interests of their children.

“This lack of legislative clarity can even add an extra layer of complexity when trying to identify cases of child abuse,” he said.

Prof Rowland said society’s views on punishment had changed over time, with a majority of adults agreeing that physical punishment of children was unacceptable.

He added “there must be no grey areas when it comes to safeguarding children” and changing the laws in England and Northern Ireland “will give us absolute clarity”.

Bess Herbert, advocacy specialist at international campaigning organisation End Corporal Punishment, said: “I hope that England and Northern Ireland will soon join the ever-growing number of countries that have taken this fundamental step in protecting children, upholding their rights, and supporting healthy and positive child raising.”

The NSPCC’s Joanna Barrett said children in England and Northern Ireland “continue to be exposed to a legal loophole that can undermine their basic right to protection under the guise of ‘reasonable chastisement'”.

But Simon Calvert, from the Be Reasonable Campaign, claimed calls for a law change “are motivated by ideology, not by clinical evidence” and elected representatives must reject them.

“The current law strongly prohibits all violence against children, while protecting parents from prosecution for innocent and harmless parenting decisions,” he said.

A spokesperson for the Northern Ireland department of health said changing the law will require the agreement of the Northern Ireland Executive.

“The Department of Health continues to play an important role in supporting parents and carers of children and young people and in particular to promote positive parenting behaviours,” they added.

A department for education spokesperson said: “Any form of violence towards a child is completely unacceptable and we have clear laws in place to prevent it. It is the responsibility of the parent to discipline their children, appropriately and within the boundaries of the law.

“We are supporting teachers, social workers and all safeguarding professionals to spot the signs of abuse or neglect more quickly, and our statutory framework for safeguarding children in England makes clear what organisations should do to keep children safe.”

UK

Man arrested on suspicion of murder after woman shot dead in Talbot Green, South Wales

Published

1 hour ago

March 10, 2025

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Man arrested on suspicion of murder after woman shot dead in Talbot Green, South Wales

A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a 40-year-old woman was shot dead in South Wales.

The woman was found with serious injuries just after 6pm on Sunday and died at the scene despite the efforts of emergency services.

She was discovered in the Green Park area of Talbot Green, a town about 15 miles west of Cardiff.

A 42-year-old local man is in police custody.

Detective Chief Inspector James Morris said: “I understand the concern this will cause the local community, and I want to reassure people that a team of experienced detectives are already working at pace to piece together the events of last night.”

South Wales Police said a number of crime scenes have been set up and road closures are in place.

UK

Drivers ‘confused’ by transition to electric vehicles, ministers warned

Published

1 hour ago

March 10, 2025

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Drivers 'confused' by transition to electric vehicles, ministers warned

UK drivers are “confused” by the country’s electric car transition, ministers are being warned.

Although most drivers are not hostile towards electric vehicles (EVs), many are confused about what changes are coming and when, according to new research from the AA.

In a survey of more than 14,000 AA members, 7% thought the government was banning the sale of used petrol and diesel cars.

Around a third thought manual EVs exist, despite them all being automatic.

More than one in five said they would never buy an EV.

The government’s plan for increasing the number of electric vehicles being driven in the UK focuses heavily on increasing the supply of the vehicles.

In 2024, at least 22% of new cars and 10% of new vans sold by each manufacturer in the UK had to be zero-emission, which generally means pure electric.

Each year, those percentages will rise, reaching 80% of new cars and 70% of new vans in 2030.

Manufacturers will face fines of £15,000 per vehicle if electric vehicle sales fall short of 28% of total production this year.

By 2035, all new cars and vans will be required to be fully zero emission, according to the Department for Transport.

Second-hand diesel and petrol cars will still be allowed to be sold after this date, and their fuel will still be available.

There are more EVs – but will people buy them?

In February, 25% of new cars were powered purely by battery and in January, they made up 21% of all new cars registered in the UK.

But despite the growth of electric sales, manufacturers continue to warn that the market will not support the growth required to hit government EV targets, and called for consumer incentives and the extension of tax breaks.

The AA suggested the government’s plan focuses on “supply but does little to encourage demand for EVs”.

It called on ministers to co-ordinate a public awareness campaign alongside the motoring industry which directly targets drivers who doubt the viability of EVs.

“Our message to government is more needs to be done to make EVs accessible for everyone,” said Jakob Pfaudler, AA chief executive.

Which? head of consumer rights Sue Davis said: “When it comes to making sustainable choices such as switching to an electric car, our research shows that people are often held back by high costs, complex choices or uncertainty.

“The government needs to provide the right information on electric vehicles and other sustainable choices so that people have the confidence to switch.”

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “We’re investing over £2.3bn to help industry and consumers make a supported switch to EVs.

“This includes installing a public charge point every 28 minutes, keeping EV incentives in the company car tax regime to 2030, and extending 100% first-year allowances for zero-emission cars for another year.

“Second-hand EVs are also becoming cheaper than ever, with one in three available under £20,000 and 21 brand new models available for less than £30,000.

“We’re seeing growing consumer confidence as a result.”

UK

Man charged after climbing Big Ben’s Elizabeth Tower

Published

1 hour ago

March 10, 2025

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Man charged after climbing Big Ben's Elizabeth Tower

A man has been charged after climbing up the tower of Big Ben, the Metropolitan Police has said.

Daniel Day, 29, of Palmerston Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, faces charges of intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance and trespassing on a protected site.

He will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court later today.

Police were called to reports of a man climbing up Elizabeth Tower at 7.24am on Saturday.

The man was carrying a Palestinian flag and remained barefoot on a ledge for more than 16 hours before being lifted to the ground in a cherry picker just after midnight.

Westminster Bridge was forced to close to traffic during the morning, as tourists in central London stood around watching the spectacle.

Police said specialist officers worked with the fire brigade “to bring this incident to a close as quickly as possible whilst minimising risk to life”.