The government looks set to review the laws on smacking of children and speculation is growing that a total ban on smacking a child will be introduced.
In 2004 restrictions were toughened the legal clause allows parents to inflict "reasonable chastisement" as long as no mark is left on the child. This was introduced as a compromise for rebek MPS who were attempting to get a ban on all corporal punishemnt.
However this ruling left child campaigners unhappy as they claimed that children could still be subject to mild abuse.
However if a ban was to be imposed we would not be the first county to do so Italy, Portugal, Sweden, Bulgaria and Latvia have all banned the smacking of children and that list looks almost certain to grow.
Chris Cloke of the NSPCC says that the current law is confusing: "The law allows children to be smaked provided it doesn't leave a mark, but it's also very ambuguous as it says that you're not allowed to scratch or bruise a child. But, you're also no allowed to cause emotional harm so we believe the law needs clarifying."
But shadow children's minister, Tim Loughton said: "Even though this issue was debated barely three years ago, Labour ministers cannot resist meddling in how parents look after their children.
Bringing up children is a big enough challenge alreadywithout opening up this can of worms, which is all about nanny state rather than trusting parents to bring up their children as they see fit."