New smacking laws will plunge
parents into fear and confusion

Parents will be thrown into fear and confusion if plans to change the smacking law are approved by Parliament. Liberal Democrat Peer, Lord Lester, proposes to change the ‘reasonable chastisement’ law which has protected children and parents for over 100 years.

Although Lord Lester says his proposal will only criminalise serious and abusive smacking, The Christian Institute believes it will lead to great confusion about the law and many parents will fear being accused of abuse. Moreover, Lord Lester’s planned law could be used by anti-smacking zealots to prosecute loving parents for trivial smacks. Loving parents could be at the whim of politically correct prosecutors and judges.

The Government has rejected the outright ban on smacking proposed by the NSPCC, but is prepared to give a free vote on Lord Lester’s amendment which in theory permits mild smacking. The House of Lords is to vote on both proposals later today.

The Christian Institute points to a poll conducted by the Office for National Statistics which found that 88% of people agree that it is sometimes necessary to smack a naughty child. Leading anti-smacking campaigner Penelope Leach in research published by the NSPCC found that 90% of children are smacked by their parents.

The Lester amendment

Colin Hart, director of The Christian Institute, said today:
“The existing laws are tough enough and fair enough to protect children. So-called children’s rights groups are completely out of touch with public opinion which consistently shows overwhelming support for the present law. The proposals by Lord Lester theoretically preserve the right for parents to smack. I am concerned that they will vastly complicate the law and become a meddlers charter for children rights ideologs who believe that all smacking is child abuse. Parents will be plunged into fear and confusion. There is huge scope for curtain twitching neighbours to make false allegations against loving parents. The call to change the law should be resisted. No objective evidence has been produced which shows that the law is in any way defective.”

“Children’s rights groups want to make all smacking a criminal offence which ultimately carries a prison sentence. As well as being an outrageous interference in family life, this a totally hopeless way to protect children. Instead of going after child abusers a total ban would force police and social workers to go after ordinary parents. If the police were to enforce a ban consistently the majority of loving parents would become convicts. This shows how ridiculous and unworkable the proposals are.”

Note for editors

Tony Blair’s Government has so far resisted changing the smacking law for England and Wales. Explaining why, the Health Minister Jacqui Smith said in November 2001
“We do not believe that any further change to the law at this time would be appropriate – it would neither command widespread public support nor be capable of consistent enforcement”
Department of Health Press Release ‘Protecting children and supporting parents’,
8 November 2001

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