The smacking children debate has reemerged with experts calling for it to be made illegal in the UK.
Currently, the law in England and Wales allows parents to carry out 'reasonable chastisement', but they face prosecution if a child suffers bruising, cuts or scratches.
Now the UK’s four Children’s Commissioners have called on the United Nations requesting that the law is changed to protect youngsters.
The Commissioners first pressed for a ban last July, but Downing Street ruled out changing the law. But they renewed their demand as they addressed a UN committee in Switzerland.
Children’s Commissioner for Wales Sally Holland told the hearing in Geneva it was 'simply unacceptable' that the law on common assault gave children less protection from harm than adults.
Read more: Father wins High Court ruling on parents taking children on holiday during school terms
She said: “All governments across the UK should commit to introducing legislation to ensure children under 18 have the same protection from physical punishment as adults, fully protecting children from violence and supporting families to provide nurturing environments where all children are enabled to fulfil their potential.
“This is a fundamental issue of equality and human rights and the current legal defence of ‘reasonable punishment’ is inconsistent with the ambition for every child to realise their rights under the United Nations Convention on the rights of the child.”
An NSPCC spokeswoman backed the Commisioners’ in their plea for a ban.
She said: “Parents are often under pressure but the NSPCC believes that smacking is not the best way to resolve problems or improve behaviour. Hitting children only teaches them to use violence.
“If you were trying to convince an adult not to do something you wouldn’t hit them, so why would you do that to a child?”
Read more: Warning as toxic hogweed plant which gave youngsters severe burns is found in Manchester park
The Prime Minister's official spokesman says the government's stance is unchanged.
He said yesterday: “There is no change in the government’s position.
“There are protections in place to make sure children are not assaulted in any way.
“The law provides that reasonable chastisement by a parent to control the behaviour of a child is lawful. There are no plans to change that.”
The smacking debate comes as part of a review carried out by the UN on the way British children’s rights are being respected.
The UN asked the Commissioners to outline how Britain 'intends to fulfil its obligation to remove all legal defences for corporal punishment of children in the home and all other settings'.
The Commissioners published their first report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child last July. It recommended: “The State Party and the devolved governments should immediately prohibit all corporal punishment in the family.”
It said 'positive and non-violent forms of child rearing and behaviour management' should be promoted instead.
Read more: Zombie photo mum launches alternative princess collection - featuring 'Ab Fab' smoking Cinderella
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child is made up of 18 experts who monitor the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
It carries out periodic reviews of implementation of the Convention.
Smacking is already banned in dozens of countries, including Germany, Spain, Holland and much of eastern Europe.
However, government ministers have resisted pressure from campaigners, including previous calls from the UN, to introduce a ban here.
Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has previously argued ministers should not tell parents how to raise their kids.
She has said: “I don’t want to criminalise parents if that’s the decision that they take to discipline their child.”
