Shropshire Star

Most parents do not want smacking ban, says Shropshire Star survey

Most people taking part in Shropshire Star's poll on smacking children say they do not want a UK wide ban and they want England and Wales to stick to the same laws.

Published
Smacking a child is to be outlawed in Wales

Current laws make it illegal for a parent to slap a child if it leaves a bruise but permit a lighter smack or ''reasonable chastisement''.

Now our online survey on the issue has found that 77 per cent of readers do not want to see the introduction of a new nationwide law, compared to 23 per cent who said they would. And the majority or 65 per cent, admitted to smacking their little ones when necessary.

Of the 750 voters who responded, 53 per cent said they would smack their child 'today' while 47 per cent said they would not.

We ran the poll following the announcement that people in Wales are set to be asked their views on the Welsh government’s plans to ban it.

If families there agree with the move, it would make Wales the second area of the UK to end the physical punishment of children after the Scottish Government announced plans to remove the defence of “justifiable assault’’ in Scots law, which allows parents to use physical punishment to admonish a child.

England and Wales have the same laws governing many areas of daily life and any future ban would lead to the prospect of families on the Shropshire border living under different rules.There are no plans to change the law in England, leading to possible confusion on the Shropshire-Mid Wales border where neighbourhoods could be split in two.

Anne Longfield, the children’s commissioner for England, is supporting calls for an outright ban across the UK.

“The current legislation in England, which grants an exemption from the law on common assault to allow the physical punishment of children, is outdated. It should be updated to reflect what the vast majority of parents believe - that hitting children is wrong and that there are better and more effective ways of disciplining children and encouraging positive behaviour,” Ms Longfield said.

Section 58 of the Children Act 2004 states that it is illegal for a parent or carer to smack their own child, except where it amounts to “reasonable chastisement”. Corporal punishment in schools was banned by the Parliament in 1986.

When it came to the question of whether England and Wales should have the same laws more than half or 54 per cent of readers agreed, while 46 per cent said they should not be the same.

The Welsh government wants to remove the defence of reasonable punishment to the offences of battery and assault and is due to launch a 12-week consultation exercise on the issue. The ban would be part of a wider package of measures to support children to have the best start in life.