On 25 March 2019, Julie Morgan AM, Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services (the Deputy Minister), introduced the Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment (Wales) Bill (the Bill) and accompanying Explanatory Memorandum. The next day, the Deputy Minister made an oral statement in Plenary in which she explained:
“If the Bill is enacted, the defence of reasonable punishment will no longer be available within Wales to parents, or those acting in loco parentis, as a defence to a charge of common assault or battery. It will be removed under both criminal and civil law. While corporal punishment has long been banned in schools, children’s homes, local authority foster care and childcare provision, adults acting in loco parentis in non-educational settings, including the home, are able to use the defence of reasonable punishment. So, this Bill removes this loophole.”
To see the report and red its recommendations click: http://www.assembly.wales/laid%20documents/cr-ld12708/cr-ld12708-e.pdf
