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Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 09:09 GMT 10:09 UK

Singleton's comments on Today are not good enough. Intense equals an overnight stay. So, school exchanges, putting up a visiting youth group, choir or members of an orchestra - we all need ISA registration & CRB certificates as well? Fundementally we are rewriting the rules of how we are allowing ourselves to relate to children. No wonder a lot of men feel intimidated in talking to children at all. No wonder some children use the paedophile allegation as the means of getting out of bother.

Vince Allen, Gateshead, United Kingdom

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 09:07 GMT 10:07 UK

CRB checks for wanting to be a parent next is what I predict.What the hell has Great Britain become folks-little Russia?It's absolutely ridiculous & totalitarianism isn't the word for it it's beyond that.If this was France we'd have taken to the streets years ago.Come to think of it-anyone up for Downing Street week this Sat........?

Mrs K H Hemmings, Wrexham

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 09:03 GMT 10:03 UK

One thing that mystifies me is the phrase "soft intelligence". Does this mean a check could be refused on the basis of malicious, baseless gossip? On my daily commute recently I overheard a bunch of teenage girls (from a well respected school) planning how they could definitely get a male geography teacher whom they didn't like into trouble by alleging "inappropriate touching" - little angels, eh!? The point being that adults in charge of children these days are vulnerable as well as kids.

Eleanor

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:58 GMT 09:58 UK

but also to amateur-run voluntary organizations! In many cases, voluntary groups will have no competency in data protection or document control and the individual's right to privacy and data protection could be all too easily compromised.

Simon Fletcher, Fleet, Hampshire

Simon most of the voluntary organisations I work with have much better competency than public sector bodies, even those run entirely by volunteers. They may be voluntary but they are not amateur!

[suespeaking], London

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:57 GMT 09:57 UK

This is a simply ridiculous idea. What is next from this lame duck of a government?

Everyone should be locked up from birth until they can prove to a judge that they are wholly and fundamentally innocent?

This only serves to further alienate this government. With the current state of politics there is no preferable successor.

David Russhard

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:55 GMT 09:55 UK

How long before I have to get a state check into my personal ilfe before I can even have any contact with my own children? This meddling government has done far more damage to civil liberties could ever do, but fortunately their days are numbered.

Hokey Cokey, london, United Kingdom

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:53 GMT 09:53 UK

I have never read so much paranoia before on one page. This isn't about punishing the innocent, it's not witch hunt or way to make money. This is about protecting our kids. As a parent I fully embrace this and won't have any problem adding my details to such a register. Yes I wouldn't trust anyone who refused to go on it, but odds are I don't trust them now. I'm very careful about who I leave my kids alone with, this register could increase the number of people I trust with my kids.

Nicola Smith, London, United Kingdom

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:47 GMT 09:47 UK

When (not if) the worst happens again then all involved will be able to rest a little easier because every hoop had been jumped through, every form had been filled in, so everyone's back will be covered with a suitable paper trail. It's a hideously expensive system which is gradually destroying our trust in anyone who wants to work with kids.

The money should be spent on a robust system for parents and colleagues to report concerns about workers, with a view prevent future incidents.

[jiminybob], Huddersfield, United Kingdom

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:32 GMT 09:32 UK

Once or twice a year we hear of an horrific attack on a child/children. Now this small number is still to many but this response is disproportionate.
Stupid drivers who think they can drive while texting or drunk kill 100's of children every year, where is the blanket ban on the deadly weapoons called cars. Many children drown are all the river being drained?
You must have sensible and proportionate measures not the blanket branding of every adult as a paedo unless they can prove otherwise.

Dave, northwich

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:13 GMT 09:13 UK

CRB has grown into a huge bureacratic machine. It is quite costly. Its goals are obviously worthwhile. The question is, does it achieve its aim of reducing crimes against children? It may seem intuitively sensible, but there are many reasons that it might not work in practice. Before it grows even further, should we not have some idea of what it has actually achieved? Or perhaps it has not been measured but just run on the assumption that it must do good?

Martin, Cambridge

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:11 GMT 09:11 UK

Currently Legislation is being prepared which will require ALL Parents to prove they are not abusing their children.
Councils will (with 2 weeks notice) be allowed access to your home to interview your children alone without anyone they know present. The purpose iof these interviews will be to determine if the children are being abused, so you can guess the content of the interview.
Children as young as 5 will be interviewed.
Refusal will lead to the children being taken into care.

mr bean

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:07 GMT 09:07 UK

Further this government is now pushing through legislation that will allow all local authorities the right of entry into every home to interview children "on their own" this legislation is being pushed through because the government believes that parents may be abusing children and the only way to find out is to forcibly enter the home and interview.
This is being pushed through now under the guise of "regulation for children educated otherwise from school"

mr bean

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 08:06 GMT 09:06 UK

Why are the entire population of people who work with children or vulnerable adults required to registed on this new scheme at a cost of £68.00 per person? It does appear that the new organisation running this initiative are going to be quite rich pretty soon. Wouldn't the "rational response" be to register those people who are NOT authorised to work with children and then potential employers could check to see if someone appeared on that list if they did they wouldn't be employed. Much simpler!

Kevin, Guildford

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 07:56 GMT 08:56 UK

These Children's checks sound wonderful BUT the reality is - the individuals who want to abuse children will continue to do so and it will only create more grief and expense to those people who really want to help and/or work with children.
It's basically another job and department created by this hopeless government for more of our hard earned, over taxed, money to be squandered on and another set of inflation proof civil service pensions provided for.

[johnmiddlesbrough]

Added: Tuesday, 15 September, 2009, 07:48 GMT 08:48 UK

Another insane, unworkable piece of nonsense from this control-freak government. If it gets through, every single adult in the country should apply as we're all potential volunteers. Let's see the sysem cope with 55 million simultaneous applications.

John, Wirral, UK