Wales' smacking ban would make criminals of parents: Is that OK?

A campaign is being launched to stop Welsh Government plans to criminalise parents for smacking their children.

The Welsh Government wants to remove the legal defence for parents who use smacking as a way of disciplining their children.

But a group of parents, known as Be Reasonable, has warned that introducing the legislation would leave “ordinary parents facing jail.”

The campaign group has started a petition calling on the Welsh Government to scrap the plans.

They argue that the new legislation wouldn’t recognise a difference between smacking and abuse and would mean ordinary parents would be viewed as “no better than violent thugs and child abusers”.

“They’re trying to make out that a gentle smack on the back of the legs from a loving mum is the same as beating up your kids,” Lowri Turner, one of the campaign parents, told BBC.

“Does anyone seriously think that that sort of abuse is not already illegal?”

“If the government can’t tell the difference then they shouldn’t be passing laws about it.”

Under current laws, parents cannot be criminally convicted for smacking their children as long as the punishment is considered to be ‘reasonable’. But the new proposals would see this defence removed.

The group cites opinion polls, carried out by Comres, which reveal that a ban on smacking is seen by some parents as an unwanted intrusion into family affairs. 69% of those polled didn’t believe parents should be banned from smacking their children and 76% of parents questioned didn’t think that smacking children should be made a criminal offence.

But children’s groups have stepped in to offer their support to the proposed move and Children’s Commissioner Sally Holland has stated that the proposed change will merely accentuate cultural changes in family life that has already seen smacking used by fewer parents.

“Fewer parents than ever resort to smacking these days and I believe that in the next generation we will look back on the current outdated law and find it astounding that we had a legal defence for hitting those more vulnerable than us,” she said.

The Welsh Assembly narrowly voted against abolishing the smacking defence in 2015, but this time the Welsh Government says it is committed to seeking cross-party support to introduce legislation to remove the defence of reasonable punishment. It plans to launch a consultation within 12 months.

It isn’t the first time there has been a call for a blanket ban on smacking. Earlier this year a university lecturer spoke out about her desire to see smacking made illegal.

Felicity Gerry, a law lecturer at Charles Darwin University in Australia believes spanking, hitting or smacking a child should be outlawed.

Though physical punishment of children is illegal in 49 countries, in the UK, US and Australia ‘reasonable chastisement’ is still allowed, but Ms Gerry believes it is unacceptable.

“Slapping, spanking, smacking and hitting a child with a wooden paddle are forms of violence that would amount to assault if applied to an adult,” she told The Daily Telegraph.

Her comments come after last year it was revealed that smacking children in the UK could be banned if a UN inquiry ruled in favour of making the parenting practice illegal.

But, with over half of British parents believing that smacking children is an effective form of discipline, there could be a large number of UK-based mums and dads who agree with Be Reasonable and who therefore might have something to say if the practice is outlawed in Wales.

As part of an ongoing research into British parenting, a survey by Voucher Codes Pro of 2,186 British parents has revealed two thirds of them admit to believing in the concept of smacking their children, but only a third (35%) have actually used the method.

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