Will a ban on slapping children leave parents legally exposed?

A BAN on the slapping of children could result in ‘draconian penalties’ for parents, because some judges could impose the law with more rigour than others, a family law specialist has warned.

However, Cork-based expert Anne O’Neill said that there’s no basis for not banning the practice.

“It seems to me that when we signed up to the EU, we signed up to the charter of human rights, and Article 17 of that charter prohibits all corporal punishment, and other cruel or degrading forms of punishment of children.