Written question asked by John Bercow (Conservative) on Thursday, 28 February 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 3 March 2008. It was answered by Baroness Hughes of Stretford (Labour) on Wednesday, 26 March 2008 on behalf of the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Children: Protection

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent discussions he had with the Home Office on strengthening the law to protect children who have been groomed.

Answer: There have been no specific discussions recently on this matter. However, Home Office is a key member of the new Child Safety PSA Board, which will monitor delivery of the PSA to improve children and young people's safety, for which the Department has lead responsibility. The PSA Board will consider all issues relating to children's safety. DCSF has also attended meetings of the Inter-Ministerial Group on Sexual and Domestic Violence, the group led by Home Office which co-ordinates the Government's joint action to tackle these issues.In addition, the Byron review, which reports shortly, will make recommendations about how to support children to use the internet safely. This will help address a range of online risks to children, including the risk of grooming by online predators.

Secondary information