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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Rajeev Syal Home affairs editor

Top judges join call for England and Wales to raise age of criminal responsibility to 14

Two youths on a cycle leave an urban subway into bright daylight with graffiti covered walls left and right
Shami Chakrabarti said: ‘To prosecute 10-year-olds is barbaric - out of step with neuroscience, civilised international values and attempts at greater equality.’ Photograph: Alan Morris/Alamy

The former president of the supreme court Lady Hale is urging ministers to change the law so that children as young as 10 can no longer be charged as adults.

Along with Lady Butler-Sloss, previously the highest-ranking female judge in England and Wales, she has signed an amendment to the crime and policing bill to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14.

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