Exclusive: Ministers are set to raise the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland from eight to at least 12, effectively taking all primary school pupils out of the formal justice system.
MINISTERS are set to raise the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland from eight to at least 12, effectively taking all primary school pupils out of the formal justice system.
The Herald has seen a draft response to a United Nations committee which demanded a radical change to the age of culpability in Scots law - the lowest in Europe, except Ireland.
Holyrood ministers accept that change is necessary to bring Scotland into line with other countries in its treatment of children, offering young offenders help rather than punishment.
However, critics will point to official figures that suggest eight to 11-year-olds are responsible for nearly 5000 crimes each year in Scotland.
The Association of Scottish Police Superintendents has argued that raising the age to 12 would restrict how the system deals with persistent offenders and leave under-12s vulnerable to exploitation by older criminals.
Their fears will be fuelled by new figures obtained by The Herald showing that children as young as three are committing crimes across Scotland. More than 200 offences - including serious assault, fire-raising, robbery and racially aggravated conduct - were recorded by police investigating youngsters under eight.
Details supplied under the Freedom of Information Act include four three-year-olds taking part in vandalism in the Strathclyde, Central and Northern areas. Other offences were more serious, with children aged six and seven caught committing racially aggravated offences, serious assault and found in possession of weapons.
Earlier last year, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child recommended ministers "ensure that the age of criminal responsibility in Scotland should be raised considerably".
It wants the minimum age across the UK, including England where it is 10, to be 14.
The 58-page draft response by ministers indicates imminent reform, meaning a much larger number of young offenders would have "crimes" recorded by police then referred to children's hearings to give them care and protection, not punishment.
It states: "The Scottish Government will reflect on the comments from the UN committee, and the points raised in the Scottish Parliament debate last November, regarding the age of criminal responsibility. These will help inform our thinking on any changes to legislation."
In November, Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini told a Holyrood committee she believed the current age was too low and needed reviewed. She said: "I do consider that the age of competence of eight is extremely low in Scotland ... I do not prosecute children where it can be avoided."
Ms Angiolini already has the power to decide if an under-16 should be prosecuted in an adult court, rather than sent through the children's hearing system.
The ministerial response covers a huge range of children's issues, including a reaffirmation of a move to end the prison detention of under-16s.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: "Ministers have made clear our commitment to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and to promoting and supporting the rights of all children in Scotland as a key strand of our work to improve outcomes for all."
Tam Baillie, chair of the Scottish Alliance for Children's Rights, said: "The age of criminal responsibility in Scotland is far too low and it is now time to have a debate about whether we should raise that threshold."
The new statistics on under-eight crime from April 2007 to March 2008 reveal how very young children are caught up in wrongdoing.
In Strathclyde, 33 youngsters aged seven and below were recorded for offending, including one three-year-old and one aged four - both involved in vandalism, malicious damage, and malicious mischief. Two seven-year-olds were recorded for petty assault and one for serious assault.
The other seven forces record under-age crime in various ways: in Lothian and Borders, 17 children were reported for 21 offences, while Tayside had 36 involved in 59 offences.
Central (32) and Fife (42) recorded total offences, while Dumfries and Galloway (13) and Northern (11) listed the number of children involved. Grampian was unable to provide details.
