§ 91. Mr. J. P. W. Mallalieuasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he is aware that newspapers are publishing names and addresses of minors who are criminally assaulted, thereby occasioning additional distress to the victims and their families; and if he will, therefore, introduce legislation to prohibit the publication of such details.
§ Mr. R. A. ButlerIf the hon. Member has in mind reports of court proceedings, Section 39 of the Children and Young Persons Act, 1933, gives the court a12W discretion to direct that no particulars calculated to lead to the identification of a child or young person involved in court proceedings relating to a sexual offence shall be published. The courts sometimes ask the Press not to publish the names of older victims of such offences and I believe that the Press is generally willing to respect such requests, but I should not feel justified in introducing legislation to prohibit publication in all cases where the victim is under 21.