Consultation on the Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment) (Wales) Bill
Tystiolaeth i’r Pwyllgor Plant, Pobl Ifanc ac Addysg ar gyfer craffu Cyfnod 1 Bil Plant (Diddymu Amddiffyniad Cosb Resymol) (Cymru) |
Evidence submitted to the Children, Young People and Education Committee for Stage 1 scrutiny of the Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment) (Wales) Bill |
CADRP-590 |
CADRP-590 |
About you
Individual
— Yes
(we would be grateful if you could keep your answer to around 1000 words)
Adults are protected from assault under the law and children should have exactly the same rights - arguably even greater rights as they are more vulnerable. The UNCRC says that physical punishment is against a child's human rights, and our law should reflect this.
(we would be grateful if you could keep your answer to around 1000 words)
Yes, the law needs to be clear that children have the same rights as adults, and that anyone inflicting any sort of physical harm on children will face consequences under the law.
(we would be grateful if you could keep your answer to around 1000 words)
I support the need for a publicity campaign explaining what this change in law will mean in practice for parents, and additional parental support to understand and implement the changes through schemes such as Flying Start.
(we would be grateful if you could keep your answer to around 1000 words)
Yes
(we would be grateful if you could keep your answer to around 1000 words)
No
(we would be grateful if you could keep your answer to around 1000 words)
No
(we would be grateful if you could keep your answer to around 1000 words)
The defence of 'reasonable chastisement' is an extremely grey area, and should be removed. There shouldn't be any circumstance under which hitting a child is OK. Let's follow our forward-thinking neighbours in Scotland and nearly every other country in Europe.