Thursday 26 June 2008

"Adults scared to go near kids"

Too bloody right! They're all armed to the teeth and have no respect for the law ... oh ... that's what they mean.

The highlight is this bit:
Beverley Hughes, minister for Children, Schools and Families, said it would become a criminal offence for a parent to let a child stay at their home on a foreign exchange visit without having a CRB check.

As "ChildLine founder Esther Rantzen said there were some examples of child protection legislation descending into "politically correct madness".

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

MW

(As I commented on another blog) Rantzen's contribution to the Furedi/Rantzen interview on Today this morning was, in a nutshell, "if you've nothing to hide, you've nothing to fear". Phew - I'm sure we're all reassured by that!

Mark Wadsworth said...

True, but at least she has an inkling that there is a line to be drawn somewhere and that maybe we're going too far.

Plus in her case, I have no doubt that she really cares about kids in general, it's not just grandstanding.

Simon Fawthrop said...

The problem with all this hysteria is that it is damaging more kids than any benefit we are likely to see.

Its only one, minor, example but we haven't been able to get anyone to act as Junior Organiser for our golf club. This means that nobody is willing to arrange competitions, coaching, matches and generally act as a guiding light. As a result we no longer have a thriving section.

It is important for boys to have outlets like this and to come under the influence of adult role models other than their parents. The Great Wiseone was telling about the latest research (sorry no link) that says after about the age of 11 boys need outside role models more than their father's parental role.

If this is being seen across other sports clubs then we are in serious trouble.

CityUnslicker said...

I have posted on the same topic. It is pure madness and very expensive too!

Snafu said...

Would Ian Huntley have passed a Criminal Records Bureau check as he had no convictions prior to murdering two young girls!?!

Anonymous said...

snafu

I think I'm correct in saying that the two girls were not pupils at the school where Huntley was caretaker but at the school where his girlfriend worked. If so, a CRB check (even if he was on the list) wouldn't have had much effect.

MW

You are probably correct that Esther does have an inkling that there are lines somewhere and you may also be right that she is not involved in this solely for the greater glory of Esther. Although - and forgive the cynicism - it doesn't hurt. It especially doesn't hurt when your target is the most reviled criminal group in the UK: no, not terrorists, paedophiles! Nevertheless, when push comes to shove I suspect she'd cast her ballot in the "nothing to hide, nothing to fear" box.

That being said, I also admit the possibilitiy that her heart's in the right place. After all, she could be spending her time frightening us about global warming along with some
brain dead celebrity like this idiot scientologist.