Law change that could have seen James Bulger's killers escape trial

THE age of criminal responsibility in Scotland could be raised from eight to at least 12 in a radical change to the law, it emerged yesterday.

Such a move, which children's rights campaigners say is long overdue, would effectively take all primary school-age children out of the formal justice system.

In a draft response to a United Nations committee that demanded a major change to the age of culpability in Scotland – one of the lowest in Europe – officials accept that change is necessary to bring the country into line with others by offering young offenders help instead of punishment.

It comes weeks after Scotland's chief prosecutor called for an increase in the age at which children could be held criminally responsible. Elish Angiolini, the Lord Advocate, told MSPs that eight-year-olds, who can at present be prosecuted, should not normally face the courts.

But critics point to newly released figures suggesting that children aged between eight and 11 are responsible for nearly 5,000 crimes every year in Scotland.

And the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents has previously argued that raising the age to 12 would leave under-12s vulnerable to exploitation by older criminals.

As far back as 2001, the then Scottish Executive was accused of dithering over plans to raise the age of criminal responsibility from eight to 12, amid fears of a public backlash following the release of James Bulger's killers.

If such an age limit had been in place across the UK at the time of the murder in 1993, his ten-year-old killers, Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, would never have gone to court.

Last year, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended ministers "ensure that the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland should be raised considerably". It wants the minimum age across the UK to be 14 – in England, the age of criminal responsibility is ten.

A 58-page draft response by ministers indicates imminent reform.

Their response covers a huge range of children's issues, including a reaffirmation of a move to end the prison detention of under-16s.

A spokesman for the Scottish Government confirmed that ministers were considering the issue.

Last night, Kathleen Marshall, Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People, said she felt ashamed at the present age of criminal responsibility. "Scotland has one of the lowest and people are shocked by that," she said. "I feel ashamed of it. They (the government] could change it easily in terms of legislation … it would be for the greater good."

But Les Gray, chairman of the Strathclyde branch of the Scottish Police Federation, said he could not see what benefit there would be in a change in the law.

He said: "We have youths of all ages committing crime. Some are under the age of criminal responsibility, but most are aged between eight and 16.

"The majority will be one-time offenders who will learn their lesson. But the minority of persistent offenders will be responsible for a large proportion of reported crime."

Bill Aitken, the justice spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives, urged caution and said some young children were perfectly capable of knowing right from wrong.

He added: "The government must think long and hard about this before taking it further."

New figures – released under the Freedom of Information Act – show that more than 200 offences, including serious assault, fire-raising, robbery and racially aggravated conduct, were recorded by police investigating youngsters under eight.

This figure includes four three-year-olds who took part in vandalism in the Strathclyde, Central and Northern police areas. Other offences were more serious, with children aged six and seven caught committing racially aggravated offences and serious assault and being found in possession of weapons.


FACT BOX

THE age of criminal responsibility varies widely throughout the world. Here are some examples:

United States (some states): 6
Scotland: 8
Rest of UK: 10
Canada, the Netherlands: 12
France: 13
Germany, Austria, Italy, Japan, Russia: 14
Scandinavian nations: 15
Spain, Portugal: 16
Brazil, Peru: 18