I WAS very saddened to learn that the Named Person Scheme has been scrapped by the Scottish Government.

Apparently the “Scottish” Conservatives said the move was a “complete humiliation” for the Government.

I have no doubt that these very same “Scottish” Conservatives will be the very first to cry crocodile tears, call for public inquiries, and for heads to roll the next time that a child is injured or killed as a result of undetected abuse or neglect, especially by a family member.

READ MORE: Named Person scheme scrapped by Scottish Government

Declan Hugh Hainey was born on April 17, 2008 and died at his home in Bruce Road, Paisley between July 1, 2009 and August 31, 2009. The precise date of his death is not known and the cause of death is unascertained.

Kimberley Hainey, his mother, was found guilty in December 2011 of the murder of her son, but she appealed and in April 2013 the Court of Criminal Appeal quashed that conviction.

The horrific details and failings surrounding his death are freely available online by simply searching for his name.

I understand that the legal challenge to the proposed legislation was supported by the No to Named Persons (NO2NP) coalition, which includes the Christian Institute, Care (Christian Action Research and Education), Tyme Trust and the Family Education Trust.

What ever happened to “But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me” (Matthew 19:14)?

These so-called Christians argued that the Named Person legislation would lead to “unjustified and unjustifiable state interference with family rights” and that responsibility for monitoring a child’s well-being should be the role of the parent, not the state.

Their arguments had previously been dismissed as “hyperbole” by the Court of Session in Edinburgh, which said Named Person did not diminish the role of parents and had “no effect whatsoever on the legal, moral or social relationships within the family”.

Children’s charities including Barnardo’s, Aberlour, Action for Children and Children 1st accused opponents of the scheme of making “inaccurate and unjustified” statements.
Brian Lawson
Paisley

AS the unmourned Named Person legislation is finally laid to rest, we must remember that its spirit lives on in the tightly knit world of Scottish Government, education, social work and children’s charities.

In some areas, this spirit will be embodied in non-statutory Named Persons, but everywhere the same insidious philosophy will still infuse professional attitudes.

The spirit animating the Named Person scheme has seven elements:

  1. Distrust of parents
  2. The imposition of “expert” parenting approaches on all parents
  3. The undermining of parental authority and the elevation of child autonomy (often in the guise of Children’s Rights)
  4. An excessive assessment of the vulnerability of children to everyday events and interactions
  5. The assumption that parents who punish their children are damaging them. The smacking ban is just the first step.
  6. A desire to “protect” children from the values and beliefs of their parents where these diverge from those of the state.
  7. Viewing parents as equal members of a larger team of adults looking after a child.

So, while we may enjoy a glass of champagne at the graveside of the Named Person legislation, the fight to protect family life in Scotland from state overreach goes on.
Richard Lucas
Glasgow