An eminent legal scholar has issued a stark warning to the Labour government, stating it would be to its "enduring shame" if it fails to raise the age of criminal responsibility. The call echoes demands from former Supreme Court president Lady Hale and other senior judges to increase the minimum age from 10 to at least 14.
A System Out of Step with Europe
Professor Roger Evans, an emeritus professor of socio-legal studies at Liverpool John Moores University, strongly supports Lady Hale's position. He argues that prosecuting children under the age of 14 is fundamentally wrong. England and Wales currently have one of the lowest ages of criminal responsibility in the world, set at 10. This stands in sharp contrast to most European nations, where the threshold is 14 or higher.
The professor directly challenges the Ministry of Justice's defence of the current law. A ministry spokesperson had claimed that the age of 10 allows for early intervention to prevent reoffending. Evans states this argument "flies in the face of the facts" on reoffending rates and a substantial body of empirical research which demonstrates the opposite effect.
The Power of a Welfare Approach: A Chilling Comparison
To illustrate his point, Professor Evans draws a powerful comparison between two tragic historical cases. He references the 1993 murder of James Bulger in the UK, where two ten-year-old boys were convicted and subjected to intense media scrutiny and public outrage.
He contrasts this with the 1994 killing of five-year-old Silje Redergård in Norway, which was committed by two six-year-old boys. The Norwegian authorities employed a welfare-based approach. The children's identities were protected, the public response was muted, and the focus was entirely on rehabilitation. Both children were reportedly fully rehabilitated.
"All of which is in sharp contrast to the media response, public outcry and outcomes for the killers of James Bulger," Evans writes. While acknowledging these are extreme examples, he insists the vast majority of research supports the conclusion that a welfare approach is more effective than criminal prosecution for very young children.
A Defining Moment for the New Government
The professor's letter, published in The Guardian, places the issue squarely at the feet of the Labour administration. The demand to align with European standards and adopt an evidence-based, child-centred approach is now a significant test of the government's commitment to progressive justice reform.
Failure to act, according to Professor Evans, would not merely be a policy misstep but a moral failing that would stain the government's legacy. The ball is now in the government's court to decide whether to overhaul a system many experts believe is harming children and failing society.
