NEW rules making it illegal to smack children have taken a step forwards in Wales.
The new Welsh Government legislation will not make it a criminal offence to hit children, but will mean anyone accused of assault or battery against a child will no longer be able to rely on the defence of 'reasonable punishment'.
The bill follows research published last year which found 81 per cent of parents of young children in Wales disagreed “it is sometimes necessary to smack a naughty child".
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The Welsh Government's deputy minister for health and social services Julie Morgan said the new ruled would send "a clear message that the physical punishment of children is not acceptable in Wales".
“What may have been deemed as appropriate in the past is no longer acceptable," she said. "Our children must feel safe and be treated with dignity.”
She added: “As one of the most progressive nations in the world when it comes to promoting children’s rights, I am proud this Welsh Government is legislating to bring an end to the physical punishment of children in Wales, further protecting children’s rights."
The legislation will be accompanied by an awareness-raising campaign and support for parents.
Children's commissioner for Wales Professor Sally Holland welcomed the news.
“There’s nothing reasonable about physically punishing a child," she said.
"This bill sends a clear signal that Wales is a country which protects children, a country which will afford children equal protection from physical punishment as adults, a country which promotes children’s rights.
“This positive development is about removing a legal loophole to reflect what the vast majority of us parents believe - that physically punishing a child is no longer acceptable, anywhere.”
Sweden was the first country in the world to make smacking children illegal, passing a law in 1979.
Today it is banned in 54 countries, including New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Austria and Denmark, as well as Greece, Latvia, Albania and Poland. Similar laws are currently in progress in Jersey and Scotland.
If the new rules are passed by the Welsh Assembly they are expected to become law around this time next year.
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