LEGISLATION to raise the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland to 12 has been approved in principle by MSPs, although some called on ministers to go further.
The Age of Criminal Responsibility (Scotland) Bill unanimously passed its first stage at Holyrood.
It will raise the age at which a person is criminally accountable from eight – one of the lowest in the world – to 12.
The Scottish LibDems have called for the age to be raised further to 16, Alex Cole-Hamilton said his party backed the bill “with a sense of disappointment”.
He added: “This is not a radical bill, this is not even a progressive bill.”
Tory MSP Oliver Mundell urged the Scottish Government to move forward with caution and not be swayed to raise the age beyond the internationally recommended 12.
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