In England and Wales, the point at which a child can be held criminally responsible for their actions is 10 years of age. This is vastly out of line with ages of civic responsibilities and societal freedoms, which are most commonly set between 16 and 18 years of age. In England and Wales, a child cannot consent to sexual activity, vote, consent to healthcare, sit on a jury or marry another person until they meet the appropriate age threshold. The illogicality of this is made apparent by the notion that a child of ten years can be held to be have sufficient competence to commit murder, yet they cannot get medical treatment alone. This dissertation will outline the history of minimum age of criminal responsibility, along with identifying the illogicality of the current age. Proposals for reform will also be made.
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