HYNDBURN'S MP Greg Pope is calling on the Government to ban slapping.
Mr Pope has joined forces with other Labour MPs to back a campaign to modernise the law to give children the full legal protection from assault that adults have, an issue he says he feels very strongly about.
Mr Pope said: "I would like to see it made an offence to hit a child - full stop. All adults in this country have protection from assault under the law.
"But children, who by their very nature cannot defend themselves, do not have this protection. It seems to be a crazy state of affairs.
"For Labour's 'Respect' agenda to work, we must set a clear standard for non-violent parenting because we know that hitting children is a lesson in bad behaviour that can be recycled.
"Recognising children's human right to the same legal protection from assault that the rest of us take for granted would be a big step towards a more respectful and less violent society."
The Children Are Unbeatable! Alliance prepared a statement, which was signed by many key figures in the party, including Lord Kinnock, Lord Bragg, Glenys Kinnock MEP and Baroness Helena Whittaker QC, and read at the Labour Party Conference.
A spokesman said: "We urge the Labour Government to modernise the law to give children the full protection from assault that the rest of society takes for granted.
"In this third term, Labour should be a champion of such a fundamental issue of equality and human rights. Hitting children, who are smaller and more fragile, is at least as wrong as hitting anyone else.
"Equal protection for children is the progressive and just way forward."
