Members of the House of Lords have challenged the Government to respond to evidence from Wales on the impact of abolishing the ‘reasonable punishment’ defence (the legal loophole that can allow smacking), during the Report Stage of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. Humanists UK is part of the coalition of children’s charities and medical organisations calling for the end of the ‘reasonable punishment’ defence so that children have the same protection from assault as adults.
In a change to the previous amendment, which proposed an outright ban, Amendment 97 would have required Ministers to lay a report responding to Wales’s three-year post-implementation review of the Children (Abolition of Defence of Reasonable Punishment) (Wales) Act 2020 before Parliament within six months. The report would also be expected to consider the implications for England. In December 2025, the Welsh Government confirmed that its smacking ban was protecting children.
The amendment proposer, crossbencher Baroness Finlay of Llandaff, said that it ‘seeks only to make sure that this happens; it does not force the Government to take a decision’. Peers argued that Ministers have previously said they were ‘waiting for evidence from Wales’, and that this evidence is now available. Supporters also pointed to Wales’s emphasis on prevention and parenting support, including ‘out-of-court parenting support worker’ roles designed to help families before criminalisation. However, opponents raised concerns about state overreach and potential impacts on families and services, urging caution in interpreting the Welsh experience.
Responding for the Government, Baroness Smith of Malvern said Ministers would continue to monitor the legal changes in Wales and Scotland, and were working with Welsh counterparts to understand the data. The Minister also noted Wales’s final implementation report in 2027. But she said the Government does not think it is necessary to create a statutory duty to report back to Parliament.
No vote was taken on Amendment 97 at this point in the debate.
Commenting on the debate, Humanists UK’s Policy and Campaigns Manager Lewis Young said:
‘Peers were right to press Ministers on the evidence from Wales. The UK Government can no longer claim it’s ‘waiting to see what happens’ when the evidence from Wales already shows what happens when children are properly protected in law. It’s time for the Government to stop dragging its feet and give children in England equal protection under the law.’
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For further comment or information, media should contact Humanists UK Director of Human Rights and Advocacy Thompson at press@humanists.uk or phone 0203 675 0959.
Read more about our work on children’s rights.
Read our story on the Welsh Government’s response to its smacking ban.
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